From the Ashes
by Artemis Faery
Summary: Kyona was raised by Azog, she was at his right hand, he trusted her. Until the day she finds herself with a band of 13 dwarves, a hobbit, and a suspicious wizard. Will her loyalties stay with Azog, or with the man she loves? OCxThorin AU thanks to OC. *Complete*
1. Snow and Ash

**From the Ashes**

* * *

**Chapter One**

**Snow and Ash**

* * *

***Black Speech is in bold text***

Smoke filled the air, along with the stench of burning flesh, blood and fear.

It was a good mixture in Azog's opinion. This once thriving farming village was now barely more than ashes and half burned structures. He and his warriors had massacred every living soul within the village… or so they'd thought.

Azog the Defiler rode atop his white warg, his pale, scarred skin gleaming in the winter moonlight. He sat looking out over the destruction of the village. Ash and snow fell heavily, covering the burnt corpses that littered the ground. His beady blue eyes caught a bit movement in the ashes a small distance away. He waved for an orc to go investigate. The ugly brute lumbered over to the spot where Azog had spotted movement. The orc bent over closer to the ground. Before he could react a small girl sprang from the ashes – wielding a knife – she stabbed the orc in between the eyes, killing him instantly.

Azog watched in surprise and amusement when he saw this little girl clearer. She was no more than five; long dark brown hair, freckles, fierce grey eyes, and she had just killed his second in command with a hunting knife – which she clung to desperately. She screamed, not a frightened scream, but a challenge, daring anyone to come near her.

Black orc blood splattered her cheeks mixing with some of her own. His finger flicked for another one of his warriors to go at her. The assigned orc was smaller than the other, but none the less vicious. The orc smiled wickedly as he started toward the small girl.

Azog watched the girl carefully. Her eyes darted around her surroundings, taking in any possible means of survival. Her eyes landed on the half burnt down warehouse on the other side of the former street. Quickly she dashed to the corner of the half demolished building, Azog craned to see what she would do next. The brute rushed her, but he did not look up. The little girl had sliced a rope securing a heavy load of bricks which had been hanging over the old burnt loading dock; making the load come crashing down on the orc's head. Now Azog was amazed, a small human child, a girl, had just killed two of his best fighters with ease.

Time to end this.

He nodded for his biggest orc to step forward. The brute brandished his giant axe. Azog noticed in satisfaction how pale the little girl had gone. Her eyes widened has he got closer, she scampered into the un-burnt side of the warehouse, disappearing from view. The orc grunted in annoyance as he made his way into the remaining part of the building.

Azog listened carefully to the on goings inside the half burnt warehouse; he heard the loud grunts and movements of the brute, and the barely audible sound of the pitter-patter of a child's bare feet. His eyes looked to the top of the building where she now crouched quietly at the highest point of the roof. The orc came out of the building, confused. Azog heard the little girl take a deep breath before jumping off the roof onto the brute. He screamed surprise when he knife came in contact with his neck. She hacked and slashed at random, before long the back of his neck was complete severed from his body, killing him slowly. She sprang from his back falling into the ashen snow. By now she was completely soaked in black blood, she was also shaking from the cold.

There was silence among the orc pack, no one moved. They all watched this young girl kill three of their own with relative ease. Azog smirked in evil delight, he may have lost three good fighters, but he had gained a valuable asset.

This child could be of use to him.

Azog slid off his warg into the deepening ash mixed snow. He walked toward the girl slowly, watching her every move. She made none. Tears started falling from her eyes, and the knife in her hand started to shake, she knew it wasn't a battle she could win. As he neared her he could see her small pink lips moving, she was praying. He inwardly laughed, prayers couldn't save her now. When she was merely a foot away, he knelt down in front of her. Even at a reduced height she still had to look up at him. She was trembling now, tears streaked her small face. He reached forward and plucked the knife from her hand with no difficulty whatsoever. Her big fierce grey eyes looked him in the eye.

"You killed my family." She said through the streams of tears pouring down her cheeks.

Azog chuckled; a deep rumbling sound that would give a grown man shivers of fear.

"The fire killed your family."

"But you lit it." She countered. '_Clever, vicious, and young.' _Azog mused to himself.

"What is your name?" He asked gruffly, common tongue feeling foreign on his tongue.

"Kyona, but everyone calls me Raven." She answered, her eyes narrowed, trying to judge what his next move would be.

"Well, Raven, it is your lucky day. I'm letting you live." Azog said in a deadly soft tone as he brushed a stray hair from her forehead ever so gentle with his hooked arm. Raven winced when the cold sharp metal touched her forehead.

"Why? What is there for me?" Raven sniffed in surprise.

"Your ability to kill three orcs with ease, interests me and I would like to see what other skills you have." Azog said.

Raven was silent, she was afraid. Azog stood and shouted for his warg who bounded up to him, it growled at the little girl who glared up at Azog. He was shouting orders to his men in Black Speech.

"I will kill you one day." She vowed in a cold, solemn, tone. Azog looked down at the small blood-soaked girl and smirked.

"I'd like to see you try."

-oOo-

Raven's eyes snapped open, that vow still haunted her. After thirteen years of living in orc society under Azog's guidance, she knew she could never kill him. He had raised her, made her strong and vicious.

They trusted each other.

It had taken time to earn the other orcs respect, but she had done it, by killing every opponent they put her up against. Now she was considered a queen among the low beings of the earth. She had quite the reputation. Azog had come to trust her more than any other, if he was troubled he spoke to her about it. She was his official war councilor.

Currently they had been tracking the movements of a company of dwarves which had been moving about suspiciously. Azog had taken immediate interest in this new development. He had sent warg scouts out to see if they could track the group's movements, he himself would be leaving soon to be closer to the action. Raven was debating on joining him; she hadn't been out in a while. It was also rumored that the great Thorin Oakenshield was about, the dwarf who cut off Azog's hand. Raven fingered her knife, the same one she had had when Azog had taken her in.

She was worried for him; an odd gleam had been in his eyes of late, the gleam of obsession. It couldn't be good for him she knew, to obsess over these dwarves. Something bad would come of it.

Familiar heavy footsteps shattered her from her musings. Her head turned to see Azog's pale form come out of the shadows. She smiled slightly.

**"Have you decided yet?"** He asked her.

** "I suppose I'll come. But don't expect me to sit around and do nothing."** She said.

**"I'm glad, I wish you to see that dwarf's head on a pike."** He said as he ran his hook through her hair, it was something he always did, even though she hated it.

She glared at him sharply.

**"I don't like it when you do that."** She growled as she pulled her now thigh length dark hair away.

**"It's a habit." **

**"An uncomfortable one."** She added.

He smirked slightly before saying.

**"I have had a thought lately,"**

**"And what might it be?"** She snarled, her patience thin.

**"How easily you can trick someone into believing that you're on their side."**

Raven's eyes narrowed.

**"I don't like where this is going…"**

**"These dwarves are the ones we're looking for, Oakenshield is with them."** He grinned, the gleam brightening.

**"What does this have to do with me?"** She asked with an impatient note.

**"I want you to join the dwarves, and betray them." **He cut straight to point. Raven's eyes widened.

**"You want me to infiltrate them, gain their trust then turn and stab them in the back?" **Raven summed up.

**"Yes."**

A wicked smile came across her face.

**"Count me in."**

* * *

**AN: _If you're interested in learning about Raven's life growing up with the orcs then go check out the prelude to this story, 'Raising Ruin'. _**


	2. Mercy and Guilt

**Chapter Two**

**Mercy and Guilt**

* * *

Raven shifted uncomfortably. She was inside the walls of a small village, surrounded by humans. Most wouldn't even notice a girl wrapped in a tattered black cloak leaning in an ally way. Her job now was to find a girl that was about her size and steal her clothes. Raven wasn't thrilled. She also would need to find some soap, so she wouldn't smell like an orc. It had actually been Azog's idea for her to sneak into the village.

After an hour or so Raven had spotted the girl she wished to steal from, she might have been an inch or so taller but Raven liked the shorter styled dress she wore. Her grey eyes watched the girl come back from the market and walk into a house near the wall. _Perfect,_ She thought in satisfaction. It would be easy for her to slip over the wall and into the house. She turned sharply and withdrew from the scene.

-oOo-

Azog stood beside his warg, waiting for Raven's return. He had an odd twisting in his gut when he thought about Raven being with the dwarves on not killing-on-sight terms. He certainly didn't like it one bit that she would be near Oakenshield, almost all the time. Another little detail nagged at his mind, Raven was at that age of life where the opposite gender was seemingly more attractive. And she didn't have those feelings toward orcs. If she began to love one of these dwarves—Azog shuddered at the thought of his girl, his _child, _being touched in any way by those vile creatures. A shadow slipped through the bushes. Raven flipped her hood down, a smirk played on her lips.

**"I found someone. I'll be going back at nightfall."** She said.

**"Good, we don't have much time to spare."** He stated.

**"Our wargs ride fast; we will be there in time."** Raven reassured him.

**"Raven, if they find out who you are I want you to run. Get as far away from them as you can."** Azog told her, the faintest hint of worry in his tone.

**"You would stay and fight! I will not be a coward!"** Raven said indignantly.

**"They're much older and stronger than you. Your knives are deadly, but not against thirteen dwarven warriors."** He put his hand on her shoulder.

Raven gave him a half hearted glare.

**"Alright, fine, I'll run."** She agreed, pushing his intact hand off her shoulder.

She turned and stalked off to where the wargs were resting, she picked her warg out from the others. It was a smaller warg, a female; she was lighter in color than the wargs. Raven had given her the name Cainis when she was a child. The girl stepped over some sleeping wargs' tails and slid down beside Cainis, who gave a friendly rumble to her master. Raven absentmindedly started scratching the warg's ears; her father's worry concerned her. He had never acted the way he just did; he was always the strong violent Azog the Defiler, he was never worried for her… was he?

-oOo-

Raven left as soon as the sun set. She rode Cainis to the outskirts of the town, keeping to the shadows, she rode low. The stars were shining bright that evening, the moon was in a crescent as Raven scaled the log wall of the town. After she was over she identified the house in which the girl had gone into. Looking both ways for guards, Raven carefully climbed into the house. The top window was open; the rough cloth curtains blew in the evening summer breeze. Quiet as a shadow, Raven slid into the window.

She saw a large bed with four small sleeping forms under the blanket. Old memories of her childhood with her two twin brothers plagued her mind. If she had been accompanied by an orc she would have killed them in their sleep. But she was alone, and she couldn't bring herself to slaughter four innocent children in their sleep.

Her eyes scanned the room for the girl she had seen earlier at the market. On the other side of the large loft room she saw a separate bed, and a dresser. In that bed was the form of the girl from earlier. She crept over to the dresser and opened it; she rummaged through the clothes till she found what she was looking for. A green dress which was cropped to the knee, it had soft patterned leather hemmed the sleeves and the edges of the skirt. She also accommodated leggings, soap, leather boots, and a comb.

Raven then wrapped it all up inside the dress. On her way out she realized something. Azog was expecting her to kill the owner of the clothes. Raven's hand moved to the knife on her waist, her eyes shut tightly. Then she let out the breath that she had been holding in, she couldn't. She was weak. She couldn't kill this girl. Not when her younger siblings would be the ones who found her in the morning. Raven flew out the window and landed on the ground in a roll, scaring the daylights out of a young patrolling guard. She cursed in orcish; she looked into the young man's scared blue eyes, his hand reached for the bugle at his side.

It wasn't an option, he had to die.

Raven's blade flashed in the moonlight as she sliced his throat. As soon as his dead body hit the ground she felt instant guilt. This young man probably had a lover and a full life ahead of him. And now he was dead. She resisted the urge to cry, she ran as fast as she could out of that place.

Raven was out of breath when she reached Cainis's hiding place. The warg looked at her in confusion. Raven sunk to the ground, her stomach was twisted up in violent knots of guilt. She ran her fingers through her hair in anguish. Cainis nuzzled her; she could tell that her master was in pain. Raven took deep breaths trying to control her emotions. She would need this skill when she was with the dwarves. One mistake could cost her life. After she had calmed herself, she mounted Cainis and took off toward the orc camp.

The now calm girl walked into the orc camp with a spring in her step. Azog would not know of her weakness. The pale orc stood hunched over a large boulder, it resembled a stone table. His strongest warriors stood in formation around it. He looked up and smiled when he saw her come out of the shadows.

**"You smell of blood." **He said, a half grin on his face.

**"Someone got in my way, I couldn't let him escape."** She said as she walked up to the stone 'table'. They were looking at a worn, dirty map of Middle Earth.

**"You have learned well. There was a time when you would not be so ruthless." **Azog praised.

**"I've learned from the best."** She smirked, as she examined the map closer.

**"We ride tonight. One of our scout packs will engage the dwarf scum soon."** Azog declared, standing up straight. Raven took the hint and whistled for Cainis.

-oOo-

They rode all night and through the next day. Their destination was some old ruins in the middle of nowhere. But it was a very strategic position, according to Azog. Raven was exhausted; riding for two days with little rest took its toll on her. The orcs were hardier, but Raven was stubborn, so she didn't complain. The moon was a crescent gleaming behind them when two remaining orc scouts came limping back to the ruins.

Raven had been resting behind some old rocks when she had been awoken by the activity. She stood up and stretched before joining Azog. Apparently, these two warg scouts were the only ones who survived. They had been chasing the dwarves when they were ambushed by elves, thereby losing the dwarves. This made Azog _very _angry.

**"I barely escaped with my life!"** One of the returning orcs groveled, it's beady eyes flicking to Raven as she leaned against a boulder.

**"Far better you had… paid with it."** Azog mused as he ran his hook through his white wargs fur.

Raven inwardly winced when he picked the trembling orc up with his hook and threw him. The nearby wargs devoured the unfortunate creature. The remaining orc let out a squawk of fear. Azog then bellowed to the others to find the dwarves, if they didn't they would pay with their lives. At this, all the orcs scampered to their wargs and sped away, leaving Raven and Azog alone. She could hear him fuming.

**"We'll get them, don't worry. Remember, you have me to infiltrate them."** Raven assured him, standing from her slouching position and coming to the pale orc's side.

**"The fools, the dwarves are probably into the mountains now." **He growled angrily. She laid a calming hand on his arm, his tense posture eased up.

**"I will leave at dawn."** Raven confirmed. Azog stood very still looking at the moon.

**"Raven, I want you to be careful. I don't want you to die."** Azog said, the concerned tone he only used for her leaking it way into his voice.

**"I won't, I promise." **She gave him a small smile, hoping that it was believable. Because on the inside she was full of doubt.


	3. A Painful Tumble

**Chapter Three**

**A Painful Tumble**

* * *

The water was sharp and biting against Raven's already rubbed raw skin, the soap had removed the healthy layer of grime that covered her fair complexion. A grimace appeared on her face when she rinsed her hair out into the water, she didn't think she had been _that _dirty. When she finished she put on the stolen dress, boots and leggings. Combing her hair proved a challenge, considering it had not been combed properly in years. She put her hair in a simple braid; it went down past her waist. She knew Azog wouldn't be too pleased. He was fond of her untamed hair. Cainis gave her an odd look as she came up beside the warg.

_'Oh I can't even begin to imagine the orcs reactions.'_ She thought sarcastically as she swung up on the light colored warg.

As she neared their resting place, the one guard on watch brandished his sword. Raven held up a hand.

**"I doubt my father would be too pleased if you killed me."** She said in a bored tone. The orcs immediate apologies went almost def to Raven's ears as she made her way towards Azog and his white warg, Azazal. He was sitting in the shade of a large tree, probably hiding for the midday sun.

**"You smell terrible."** He grunted as she approached.

**"Thanks, I'm clean."** Raven glared.

**"Before you return to us, make sure you're dirty." **He said as he looked toward her. He looked at her for a moment.

**"I sometimes forget that you aren't one of us," **He mused as he came toward her and examined the new braid in her hair.

**"Where did you learn to braid?"** he asked on an afterthought.

A small cloud of hatred filled her eyes.

**"I think my mother taught me when I was young. One of the only things she taught that was actually worthwhile!"**

**"Do you miss your family?" **The pale orc's eyes were calculating, he was curious for her answer.

Raven growled.

**"No, I had no love for my mother and father. I had two brothers and my mother and father favored them over me. But I learned to deal with it." **

**"You have always been strong. That is why I granted you mercy in the first place."**Azog said, a hint of pride in his voice.

**"I was sure you were going to kill me."** She smirked at the thought.

**"But you held your ground. That is something to be proud of."** Azog said as he swung up on Azazal. Raven gave a shrill whistle and Cainis bounded to her side.

**"How far away are they?"** She asked, shielding her eyes against the sun and looking out onto the horizon.

**"Half a day's ride, we should be there by sunset," **He answered **"I hope you remember common language. I doubt Oakenshield would trust you if you spoke our tongue."**

"I think I can handle myself." She replied in common, he smirked and nodded before urging his warg on.

-oOo-

The sun had moved west when they came to a rocky barren land. It was the foothills of the Misty Mountains. In less than five days march the dwarves would reach the great stone peaks. Raven marveled at how ominous the mountains seemed up close. They stopped their wargs on a hilled slope above the main path, the path the dwarves would take.

**"You must meet with them here."** Azog said.

**"So I'm just supposed to come up to them and say: **'Hello! Let me join your quest so I can betray you!'" Raven gave him a half hearted glare.

Azog smirked at her sarcasm.

**"You should act as if you're injured on the path."** He informed her. Raven looked at the rocky path below her. It would be hard to convince the dwarves that she was truly hurt, unless…

**"What if I really was injured?"** She pointed out.

**"You want us to hurt you and leave you on the path?"** Azog gave her a skeptical look.

**"More or less you knocking me out and rolling me down this slope."** Raven poked the loose rocks with her foot.

Azog sighed, she was always so risky

**"If that is what you want. The dwarves with be here soon, maybe an hour."**

Raven looked Azog straight in the eye.

**"I won't ruin this, I promise."** She said determinedly before nodding to a nearby orc.

**"Knock me out." **

The last thing Raven remembered was Azog nodding to her, then a heavy blow to the head, and darkness.

-oOo-

Thorin and company marched sluggishly up the rocky path. Thorin strode in front, keeping an eye out for any danger. Gandalf was absent from them since they left Rivendell, this made Thorin a bit more on edge. The dwarf king was looking at the sky when he heard Bilbo say.

"Hey, look, is that someone lying on the road up ahead?"

Thorin squinted his eyes.

Sure enough there was someone lying on the road ahead. Thorin picked up the pace. When he reached the unconscious person he realized it was a girl, a girl who was alone out in the wilderness. He knelt down and check for pulse, a steady beat met his fingers. The girl's hair was askew and it covered the side of her face. Thorin rolled her on her back. She was young, on the brink of adulthood, fair skin, small pink lips, long dark brown hair, a splash of freckles across her nose, and some of the longest eyelashes he had ever seen.

"What is it Thorin?" Balin puffed from behind him.

"It's a girl and she seems to have fallen from that slope." Thorin replied, looking up to the rocky ridge above the path.

"Why in the Mahal's name would a young thing like her be doing out here alone?" Balin wondered.

"I do not know but she seems to be stirring." Thorin said.

By this time the rest of the company had joined them and were watching in curiosity. Thorin shook her shoulder gently. All of a sudden her eyes snapped open. Thorin could have sworn her eyes looked like deep thunderclouds, waiting to break open at any moment.

-oOo-

Raven's eyes snapped open, someone was shaking her. After her vision cleared she saw a man, or well, dwarf, kneeling beside her. He had steel blue eyes, a short black beard, long curly black hair and a stern expression. Some abnormal part of Raven's mind decided that he was quite attractive. She immediately slapped herself mentally for thinking that.

"Are you alright?" He asked in concern.

"I-I'm fine." She said her voice chalky.

"You had quite the fall."

"I've suffered worse." She croaked, now becoming aware of the dull, aching pain that consumed her body.

"Tell me, what were you doing in these parts alone?" He asked. This made Raven's throat tighten.

"I am on my way to see my mother." Raven lied. It must have sounded convincing because he asked no more questions.

"What's your name?" One young, curious looking dwarf asked, he had a scarf wrapped around his head.

"Kyona." She gave a smile. The plan seemed to be working flawlessly.

"I'm Ori, at your service." The young dwarf gave a small bow. Then two young mischievous looking dwarves stepped forward.

"Fíli." The one with blonde hair smiled.

"And Kíli." The dark haired one smirked. She could tell that they were going to be trouble.

"At your service!" They said in unison.

The next moments were filled with so many names Raven's head was spinning. Dori, Nori, Oin, Gloin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Balin, Dwalin, but no Thorin.

"And the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield." The dwarf named Balin waved an arm to the regal looking dwarf who had woke her up.

Her heart sank, for some odd reason she found herself drawn toward this dwarf. He simply nodded to her. It was hard to believe this was the dwarf Azog always fussed about.

Then a small man stepped out from behind one of the dwarves.

"And I'm Bilbo Baggins." He said in a timid, speedy manner.

"What are you exactly?" She cocked her head to the side. His was too small and hairless to be a dwarf.

"I'm a hobbit." He replied simply, Raven added this to her mental list of races.

"From where?" She questioned further.

"Bag End, in the Shire."

"I'm afraid I have never heard of it." Raven apologized. Then she noticed his large odd hairy feet, but made no comment.

"Not many have in these parts." Bilbo grumbled.

"Sorry to interrupt, but it's getting dark and there have been orcs about." Dwalin said gruffly, giving a wary eye to Raven.

Raven knew she needed to play off this.

"Orcs?!" She said in a startled manner, making her eyes wide and frightful.

"Yes, they have been hunting us." Bofur, the dwarf wearing the hat said.

"It won't be safe for you to stay out alone at night. How about you stay with us?" Balin said in a fatherly manner.

Raven breathed a fake sigh of relief. Inwardly smirking, they had no clue.

"Thank you, I am very grateful."

"Let's move on, it will be nightfall soon." Thorin ordered. Raven straightened her shoulders, adjusted her bag, and started to walk forward.

Phase 1 was completed. Now, if she could only figure out a way to get these dwarves into her father's hands.


	4. Hit Me

**Chapter Four**

**Hit Me**

* * *

Thorin didn't know what to think of her. She smiled and laughed at Bofur's jokes, she talked to the hobbit, and she tolerated Fíli and Kíli's playful flirting, and all around got along with his men. But he could see behind her good-natured mask, she was hiding something, something dark.

He didn't like it one bit.

The way she moved was sly and sneaky, like she would pull a knife on you when you weren't looking. But yet, she seemed so young and innocent, and not to mention beautiful. Compared to some she would not be gorgeous, she was lean, standing a couple inches taller than him and Dwalin. She didn't have the most prominent feminine curves, she had a delicate heart shaped face with a fair complexion, and in the midst of her freckles she had a small nose. But there were her eyes. Thorin had never seen anything like them. Her eyes were the color of hewn stone, but they changed and shifted like storm clouds. There was so many emotions swirling around in them it was hard to believe that she was so young.

Thorin watched her as the dwarves set up camp under a rocky out cropping. One other thing bothered Thorin; it was the way she spoke. Her voice would go deep when pronouncing some words before she would make it high again. She would also roll her tongue needlessly with certain syllables. None of the other dwarves seemed bothered by it though. Thorin was shaken from his thoughts when Fíli asked her a question.

"So Kyona, do you have a family?" The girl seemed taken aback by this question.

"I have a mother and two brothers." She replied cautiously.

"How old are your brothers?" Kíli asked while taking a bite of preserved meat.

"They're twins, and older than me." She said briefly, her discomfort was obvious. Kíli was about to ask another question when Balin stopped him.

"Let her be laddie, I'm sure that she has had a long journey and needs her rest." He smiled toward her.

She gave him a smile, but it didn't reach her eyes.

Needless to say, Thorin would be keeping a close eye on her.

-oOo-

These dwarves fascinated Raven. They were so kind and friendly with each other. The one wearing the hat, Bofur, was quite amusing. Raven wasn't sure she had laughed this much in a long time. Out of all these dwarves Thorin was the most interesting, he was so hard to read, he was a mystery to Raven. His black curly hair fell in waves around his shoulders and his steely blue eyes watched her like a hawk watches a mouse. His face was always solemn; she could see that he had had many hard years. One thing she had noticed was the oaken shield slung of his back. '_The very thing that saved him from my father's rage.' _Raven mused to herself. He hadn't spoken to her since she had awoken. In all honesty she wanted to talk to him again; she wanted to know why her father loathed this dwarf.

The sun had set and a damp chill had settled over the campsite. Raven sat on a rock, her cloak wrapped around her tightly. That's when the first howl came. Raven recognized it, it was Cainis. Bilbo immediately sat up and looked around, the dwarves seemed uneasy.

"They sound close." Bilbo gulped.

"They are." Thorin muttered.

"Do you think they'll attack?" Bilbo asked nervously.

"Not while we're awake." The dwarf king said darkly.

The other dwarves groaned, this meant double watch shifts. Raven inwardly smirked, she knew that Azog wouldn't call an attack tonight.

Soon enough, the food was ready. It was a soup of some sort, it smelled quite interesting to Raven, considering that she had not eat a properly cooked meal in thirteen years. The first sip of the soup burned her tongue, making the rest of the experience less pleasant. Raven was about halfway done with her soup when Thorin's unexpected deep voice came from behind her.

"How long do you intend to stay with us?"

"That all depends on where you're going." She asked, setting her wooden bowl down on the rock beside her. If she could just get them to tell her where they were going…

"That is none of your concern." He said firmly.

"Then how can I judge how long I will be with you unless I know where you're going?" She replied smartly. Thorin just glared at her until she added,

"I don't think you'd want to leave a lone girl in the wilds with orcs about."

Thorin huffed.

"Fine, we will get you over the mountains, and then you're on your own."

"Alright, that's agreeable." Raven crossed her arms.

"I expect you to pull your own weight and help with the watches and setting up camp." He said as he walked toward the fire.

"I can do that." Raven nodded.

-oOo-

The stars were bright and twinkling. Raven lay out on a large boulder with her hands behind her head. The dwarves had gone to sitting around the campfire a little ways away under an outcropping and started smoking pipes. Why one would purposefully ingest smoke was a mystery to Raven.

A she lay there the dwarf's faces went through her mind. They weren't the mindless beasts her father had made them out to be. Thorin had surprised her the most; he had shown no sign of evil hostility toward her. The thought that Azog could have been wrong flashed through her mind. She shook that though from her head. He was always right.

Raven's eyes were starting to close when she heard an odd humming. Her head snapped toward the dwarves. The humming was coming from them! She sat up and let her legs dangle over the side of the boulder she had been sitting on.

_Far over the Misty Mountains cold,_

_To dungeons deep, and caverns old,_

The words started coming from Thorin's barely moving lips.

_We must away ere break of day,_

_To find our long forgotten gold,_

_The pines were roaring on the height,_

_The winds were moaning in the night,_

_The fire was red, it flaming spread,_

_The trees like torches, blazed with light. _

Their song mystified Raven. The fact that their voices could go that low and still keep a tune was remarkable!  
She watched them as they one by one drifted off to sleep until it was just Thorin and the odd fellow who had an ax in his forehead who still sat awake.

-oOo-

Her mind wandered as she looked up at the stars. Worry filled her heart. Azog was counting on her to carry this out! He wouldn't be able to trust her if she failed. Raven suddenly tasted blood in her mouth; she had been biting her lip. She let out a heavy sigh and wrapped her cloak tighter around her shoulders. Heavy footsteps came to the base of the boulder she was resting on. She looked out the side of her eyes and saw it was Thorin. She huffed and turned toward him.

"What?" She said.

"You're on first watch." He commanded. Raven rolled her eyes at the dwarf.

"Fine."

"Don't act like that, you agreed to pull your own weight. And that means taking watch shifts." His eyes flashed.

"I'll watch the campsite for you! Don't you worry yourself." She grumbled. Thorin gave her a glare then strolled over to his bedroll and lay down.

Raven took a deep breath trying to control her anger and confusion. She was trying to decipher her emotions. One part of her wanted to kill him and the other part wanted him to come and talk with her. Raven was fuming at herself. What evil part of her wanted this sworn enemy to come and talk civilly with her? That was absurd! Raven sat on the rock until Balin relieved her of the watch.

She quickly curled up and went to sleep.

-oOo-

The next four days went into the same pattern. Wake up, eat, walk, climb, talk, walk, climb, eat, walk, walk, climb, walk, set up camp, eat, talk, watch, sleep. Over and over.

Raven was sick of it.

Even in the orc stronghold there would be fights or bloody arguments to keep busy with. But here, everyone seemed so… at peace.

The young dwarves Fíli and Kíli were always slinging their arms around her shoulder or being absolute fools to get her attention. Often these foolish deeds earned a scolding from Thorin. Who seemed to despise their friendliness toward Raven, or well Kyona. Fíli and Kíli had approached her about a nickname.

"So Kyona, do you have a shorter version of your name?" Fíli gave her a charming smirk.

"No not really…" She replied. Not wanting to give them the name Raven. That was the name Azog used for her – no one else.

"How about Ky?" Kíli piped up. Raven nodded, that actually didn't sound too bad.

"That is fine with me." She agreed, not really caring.

"Ky it is then!" Kíli laughed before turning and yelling.

"KYONA IS NOW GOING TO BE CALLED KY FROM NOW ON!"

Thorin glared at Kíli, earning a smirk from the younger dwarf.

"I can't help but notice how Uncle has become a bit protective of you Ky." Fíli whispered. Raven raised an eyebrow.

"Thorin is your uncle?" She asked as dread filled her stomach.

"Yes. We are, well I am, his heir. Since he doesn't have a child… or a wife." The last part the brothers gave each other a sneaky look and Kíli gave her a jab with his elbow.

Raven's reaction to the jab was swift. She struck out, hard, with her fist and knocked the wind out of Kíli. The whole campsite turned toward Kíli's 'Oomph' of pain. Fíli's thunderous laughter filled the campsite.

"Oh Vala," He wiped a tear form his eye. "Ky you really got an arm!" He was gasping for breath between chuckles. Kíli glared at his blonde brother, rubbing his stomach.

Some of the other dwarves smirked or brushed it off and continued to set up camp.

All except Thorin.

He kept his scrutinizing blue gaze on her face. An odd heat rose to her face as she turned away, mumbling about going to get some water. She stalked out of the campsite and on her way through the rising campsite she grabbed the community watering skin.

Raven looked for signs of water in the rocky land, though her mind was somewhere else completely.

Fíli and Kíli were of the line of Durin, which meant that they were major targets for Azog. The thought of Fíli and Kíli's heads on pikes sent a shudder through her. She knew it was her job to get these dwarves into Azog's hands. But still, she had started to like the brother's company.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she stepped into a small stream without realizing it. She sighed and knelt down to fill the large water skin.

"Your strength is impressive, especially for a human girl." Thorin said from behind her.

The sudden comment made her jump, spilling the half full watering skin.

"Don't sneak up on me!" She spat at him.

He was leaning on a rock wall the soared up above them, his eyes narrow and calculating.

"What are you hiding?" He growled.

Raven gulped. _He knew something._

"I'm not hiding anything." She lied, turning back to refilling the skin.

"You knocked the wind out of an armored dwarf warrior. No girl your size should be able to do that with the natural reflex you showed." He came closer to her.

"I was startled… that's all. I guess I just hit hard." She lied again.

In truth, Raven was very strong. Having to lift, climb, fight and run more than any child her age should have been made her pure corded muscle. Her long sleeve dress hid her toned arms.  
She was normally wearing a modified warg skin and a belt with the trophies of fallen foes dangling around her waist.

"No, girls don't hit that hard." He came to standing beside her.

She gulped.

"Hit me." He said.

She stood up, looking down on him by an inch or so.

"Why?"

"Because, I want to know what you can do. Don't hold back." Thorin held his left hand up, palm facing her.

"Fine." She said.

She waited a moment before turning and punching his hand as hard as she could. Thorin's pain and surprise was eminent. He shook his hand and looked at her in disbelief.

"How did you…?"

Raven shrugged.

"Luck." She swooped down and picked up the full water skin with ease and started away. Thorin grabbed her arm. His eyes narrowed.

"Who are you?" He asked. This question stopped her heart.

_Who was she?_

She didn't know if she could ever answer that question.

"I don't know."

Thorin's gripped lessened. She scurried as fast as she could back to camp with the water skin slung over her shoulder, leaving Thorin watching behind her**  
**


	5. A Thunder Battle

**Chapter Five**

**A Thunder Battle**

* * *

Thorin examined his now bruising palm. He would have been surprised if one of his warriors could have even hit him that hard. Kyona had been avoiding him the past day, keeping to herself or accompanying his nephews. Thorin was sure she was hiding something now, when he felt her arm all he could feel was hard corded muscle. This troubled him. Her parents must have had her working very hard for a very long time. In Thorin's opinion her parents would have been very cruel to her. This may have added to the fact that she did not want to speak of her family. She was probably running away from them.

To say the least, Thorin was starting to get uncomfortable around her. He had an odd urge to protect her or to go and take her away from his flirting nephews. But every time he thought these things he mentally slapped himself. She was young, no more than a child in dwarf standards. He should let her be with one of his nephews, they were still young, handsome and kind. While he ware barely more than a broody old man. The thought of a wife deeply distressed, he could not give a wife the proper love and attention she deserved. Why would he even need a wife? Fíli was a young handsome capable leader who would easily find a wife.

So, the dwarf king pushed the thought of love far out of his mind and focused on the journey ahead.

-oOo-

Raven watched Thorin secretly. From what she could tell from his outward appearance he was having an argument with himself. She had seen Azog have these episodes many times. If she wasn't fearing for her secrecy she would have been laughing. The poor dwarf was pacing and running his fingers through his hair, examining the nice bruise on his left palm (Raven was quite proud of that). But the nagging little voice in the back of her head kept telling her that he was thinking about her… and her previous whereabouts before joining the company. This made the long haired girl very nervous. But yet, an odd feeling in her stomach made her happy that he was thinking about her.

Fíli and Kíli proved to be enjoyable company; they gave her all sorts of valuable information! Of course, it was everything except their final destination and the reason for their quest. The brothers had also been curious to where she was going, always asking her at random times, hoping to catch her off guard. It never worked.

The terrain had become very steep and treacherous; they were going into the mountains. Raven knew that there was a very renowned goblin king who ruled a vast amount of goblins in the mountains. Their lair was referred to as 'Goblin Town'. '_Only a dim creature could have come up with such a drab name.'_ Raven mused as she looked up at the darkening sky. A storm was coming, a brutal one by the look of the clouds.

The dwarves had just started making their way along a narrow stone ledge when the rain started. It started slowly, then before they knew it had become a tempest. Bilbo had almost fallen into the darkness below. The level of tenseness increased.

"Kyona, come towards the front!" Thorin called from the very front of the line.

His command confused her, why would he want her near him? Nevertheless, she slipped past eleven other dwarves to beside Thorin.

"I want you to stay near me, it the path begins to crumble, hold on to me." He said softly, so only she heard. Raven nodded, the odd heat rose to her face, she hoped that it wasn't outwardly visible.

The rain bit at her face and tore at her cloak, making it very hard to see. Every once in a while Thorin would reach out and touch her arm, as if to make sure she was still there. The thunder boomed and lightning flashed. More than once Raven had almost slipped, but years of living in slick tunnels underground had honed her balance.

The company was moving along a particularly thin slick stretch of the stone path when she suddenly heard Dwalin yell.

"LOOK OUT!"

Then a huge boulder came crashing above their heads. Raven ducked and covered her head from the falling rubble.

"This is no thunder storm, it's a thunder battle!" Balin yelled, pointing toward two colossal stone figures throwing rocks at each other.

"Well bless me! The legends are true! STONE GIANTS!" Bofur yelled as another giant rock came hurtling towards the company.

Raven felt a strong arm wrap around her waist and pull her against the stone wall. She turned her head and saw Thorin holding her against the on slot of rocks, shielding her from harm. She felt safe in his strong arms, like she was meant to be there. The moment was over as soon as it had started. Thorin was yelling for his men to continue moving along the rock ledge. The giants continued their battle. Raven was almost sure that they could get away when the ledge they stood on started to move.

"HOLD ON!" Thorin yelled, grabbing her once again, but this time pulling her to his chest.

The rocks beneath them started to split, tearing Fíli and Kíli away from each other. They soon realized that the path they stood on was actually the two knees of a stone giant! Their giant started to stand when another giant came and head butted it, and made it fall backwards. The stumble gave the left knee (Thorin and Raven's side) enough time to jump to safety. But the other half of the company still stood on the right knee.

Their giant brawled slowly with the other giant, dodging its slow swings. The giant on which the other half of the company still rode punched its opponent to the ground. Not noticing a third giant coming forth with a giant rock in its hands. It threw the rock with great force which crashed into the other giants head, knocking its gigantic head clean off. It stumbled and fell, smashing into the side of the mountain.

Thorin let out an anguished cry, Fíli and the others were sure to have been lost. The agonized dwarf king ran forth, yelling his nephew's name at the top of his lungs. He came around a bend in the rock and stumbled with relief. There, among the rocky debris, lay the other half of the company. Raven let out a breath of relief, she only realized this after a moment and shook her head in disgust.

These dwarves were changing her.

The brush with death was not so easily forgotten. Bofur was looking around frantically around.

"Where's Bilbo?!" He shouted.

Raven felt her stomach drop when she heard the small cries of the hobbit. He was dangling by his hands on the edge of the cliff. Bofur and Ori make mad dashes for him, but he lost his grip and fell another few feet. Now the dwarves were hopelessly out of reach. Raven had no idea what evil thing had possessed her. The lean girl swung down beside the dangling hobbit and helped push him up onto the ledge. But in her chivalry, she started to slip. No amount of experience and balance could save her now. Before she fell though, someone grabbed her arm and helped pulled her up.

Her fierce grey eyes met the furious blue eyes of Thorin Oakenshield… her savior. He was about to scold her when Dwalin commented.

"I thought we'd lost our burglar!"

Thorin turned his furious gaze on the trembling hobbit.

"He's been lost ever since he left home, he should never have come. He has no place amongst us." Thorin growled angrily.

Fortunately for Bilbo, the dwarf had spotted a cave. He and Dwalin went to investigate it. Within a moment they called for the others to join them. But as they were entering, Raven noticed a rune beside the entrance. To most it would be nothing important, simply a scratch in the rock, but to Raven, it was signaling the entrance of a goblin realm. She gulped.

They wouldn't be safe here.


	6. Goblin Town

**Chapter Six**

**Goblin Town**

* * *

Raven knew it wouldn't be long till the goblins showed up. That's why she was away from the dwarves, preparing herself. They would do terrible things to her is she did not make herself known. Orcs and goblins had a rough code of runes that would relay messages or let others know of which pack or clan they were from. That's why Raven sat behind a thick pillar of rock, making runes on a little piece of yellow paper which she had borrowed from Ori/

She put three runes. The ones that stood for:

_Azog  
Ally  
Secret_

When she finished she tied it tightly around her palm, runes facing outward. Raven gave a satisfied smirk; if she flashed her palm toward the goblins they would not hurt her.

Raven sighed and leaned against the rock pillar, trying to catch a little sleep before the goblins came. She was just about to go to sleep when someone came up to her, it was Thorin.

"Are you alright?" He asked with concern.

"I'm fine, besides being wet, cold, tired and hungry." She replied in a tone that clearly said 'Conversation is over.'

"Why did you save the hobbit?"

"Why didn't you?" She said nonchalantly.

"You had already reached him!" Thorin said, his temper rising.

"Maybe so." She shrugged.

Thorin let out a growl.

"I don't understand you, or why you're here. But I intend to find out." Thorin stormed off.

_'Temper temper!' _Raven mused to herself, smirking softly, trying to cover up her nervousness.

-oOo-

Thorin lay on his damp bedroll, seething with anger at himself and with Kyona. She was one of the most infuriating and confusing people he had ever met. What made it worse was his unwanted feelings toward her. He hated how he couldn't help but notice how soft her lips looked, or the red flush to her cheeks from the cold, or how her hair was drying with little wispy curls around her face. Thorin gritted his teeth together; he couldn't afford to fall in love. Women could be dangerous, especially when he had no idea where she came from.

The dwarf sighed and closed his eyes; he had better get some rest. He fell into a light restless sleep, and was quickly awoken when he heard Bofur speaking with Bilbo.

The hobbit was leaving.

He felt guilt twinge in his stomach. _Had he been too harsh?_ He listened to their conversation, what the hobbit said was true. They didn't belong anywhere. The chance that this quest would even succeed was unlikely. Thorin felt very put out. He slumped back down when he heard Bofur say.

"What's that?"

What happened next seemed to come out of nightmare. The floor of the cave had started to fissure and the sand was falling through the steadily growing crack.

"Up, everyone get up!" Thorin yelled as the floor gave way and the company went falling down into the abyss below.

-oOo-

_"How charming."_

Was Raven's first thought when the floor gave way, dumping the company into the rocky chasm below. She hit the rock with a sickening force along with the other dwarves; they continued to awkwardly slide/fall down the chute until the fell into what seemed to be a big cage bowl. Raven was squashed between Nori and Thorin. Of course her front had to be pressed against Thorin's chest, with her face buried into his neck. The girl glared at nothing in particular, just what she needed. Her annoyance was cut short by the sounds of goblin shrieks.

Her grey eyes widened when a wall of goblins swarmed forward on a rickety wooden bridge and corralled them. Their twisted hands searched their bodies plucking anything that could be used as a weapon. Raven growled when they took her beloved hunting knife from her hip.

The goblins pushed them down more rickety wooden paths. Thorin and the other dwarves were putting up a good fight, occasionally tossing a goblin off into the darkness below. The dwarf king had been trying to get towards her; he finally reached his goal once they had made it to a vast cavern. They were being pushed toward a rather large platform where there seem to be some sort of throne.

Now Raven had grown up around deformed, ugly orcs, but nothing had prepared her for this hideous, jiggling, _oozing_ mass in front of her. He was giant compared to his subjects. What made Raven almost gag was his, 'beard'… it was made of complete jiggling fat and boils. A sickening crunch followed by goblins protests of pain sounded out when the goblin king stepped down onto a pile of his underlings.

"Who would be so bold to come armed into my dominion? Spies, thieves, ASSASSINS?!" The large goblin said, sending spittle from his mouth.

"Dwarves, your Malevolence. Found em' on the front porch!" One goblin said proudly.

"Dwarves! What might dwarves be doing in this part of the mountains?!" The goblin said in surprised tone.

His beady eyes searched them, his eyes landed on Raven. She tell he was about to make an uncouth comment when she flashed her palm. The goblin king's eyes widened, then a cruel smirk formed on his foul face.

"If they won't talk, we'll make them squawk!" The goblin raised his scepter skull thing to the masses of goblins collected on the walls, their shrieks of excitement were deafening.

"Start with the youngest!" He pointed to Ori, who looked deathly pale.

"Wait!" Thorin strode forward from the middle of the group. The foul king stepped back in surprise.

"Well, well, _well_! Look who it is! Thorin, son of Thraín, son of Thrór! King under the mountain!" He gave a very mocking bow. Raven could see the fury radiating off the proud dwarf.

"Oh! But I'm forgetting, you don't have a mountain, so that makes you nobody really." The taunting goblin gave a fake little pout. Thorin was about to explode.

"I know somebody who would pay a pretty price for your head, an old enemy of yours. A pale orc astride a white warg!" His beady eyes flicked to Raven.

Thorin glared up at him, doubt in his eyes.

"Azog the Defiler was destroyed; he was slain in battle long ago!" Thorin said, obviously trying to convince himself.

The goblin king gave a chuckle.

"So you think his defiling days are done do you?" He asked Thorin, his eyes once again turning to Raven, then he turned to a little deformed goblin sitting in a little seat suspended by ropes.

"Send word the pale orc, we have found his prize!"

The little creature proceeded to wipe his overly long finger in its own mucus and write on a dirty slab, and then pull a lever making its seat go flying on a rope down into the darkness, cackling all the way.

-oOo-

Well this was not at all how Thorin had intended things to go. They were captured by goblins, he had revealed his identity, Azog may be alive, and the goblins were bringing up countless nasty torture devices to pry information out of them. His steel blue eyes flicked to Kyona. He wished he could just get her out of there! She shouldn't suffer with them, especially when the goblins could do much worse things to her then they could toward the rest of the dwarves. It made a shudder go down his spine. But she looked surprising relaxed, she was looking around the cavern, almost as if she didn't care that they were about to be tortured for information.

The repulsive goblin 'king' had started to sing.

_Bones will be shattered, necks will be wrung!_

_You'll be beaten and battered from racks you'll be hung!_

_You will die down here and never be found!_

_Down in the deep of Goblin Town!_

He had the worst voice Thorin had ever heard. But unfortunately it might be the last voice Thorin ever heard. A goblin had been looking at their weapons when it had come across Orcrist; of course it made a big deal about it. The goblin king clambered back onto his throne.

"I know that sword! It is the Goblin Cleaver, the blade that had slices a thousand necks! Slash them!" He bellowed.

The goblins proceeded to whip the dwarves mercilessly. Out of the corner of his eye Thorin saw the goblin king standing over Kyona, talking to her.

-oOo-

"I have heard of you, the esteemed Raven, raised by Azog the Defiler." The goblin king whispered to Raven. He was even uglier up close.

"I am not one to be taken as a weakling, I am favored be Azog, you would not live for very long if I was harmed." She spat, putting up her vicious front.

"What are you doing in the company of dwarves?" He asked.

"An undercover assignment."

The goblin king gave a twisted smirk.

"Then I will leave you to it. But you might want to take his head with you, just make sure we get the reward." The foul king nodded toward Thorin.

Raven's heart clinched, he was being beaten viciously, his face contorted with pain.

"CUT OFF HIS HEAD!" The goblin king yelled. Three goblins attacked Thorin; he managed to throw two off before more swarmed him and pulled him to the ground. One goblin stood over him, holding a jagged stone knife to his neck.

-oOo-

So this was the end. To be viciously decapitated by foul creatures. Not exactly the hero's death Thorin had anticipated. He struggled against the two goblins that held him down, but they were too strong. The knife wielding goblin was about to slice when a clear voice rang out, silencing the cavern.

"Wait."

Thorin's eyes widened, it was Kyona, standing tall in the middle of a horde of goblins. Then all of a sudden a bright powerful burst of light came forth, knocking everyone over, stunning the goblins.

"Take up arms, fight, FIGHT!" the familiar voice of Gandalf now rang through the cavern.

The dwarves regained their wits and scuffled for their weapons. Soon the cavern was a battle field. Thorin recovered Orcrist and was slashing goblin necks left and right. He vaguely saw Kyona swoop down and recover the long hunting knife that she always carried. He could no longer focus on her.

He must fight.

-oOo-

Raven grabbed her well worn hunting knife from the pile of weapons, and then turned to the goblin king who was just recovering from the blast of light.

"As I said, this is an undercover task." She shrugged as she ran her blade through the nearest goblin's neck. His eyes were wide; he would lose many to her blade.

She slashed and swung with her unique graceful style of fighting. It was fluid and graceful, almost like a dance, but yet frightening and vicious to behold. After a moment she nabbed a long, deadly looking knife from one of her fallen foes. This made her double ferocious. She killed a goblin that had been sneaking up behind an old man in a grey cloak and hat wielding a sword and a staff.

"Who are you?" He asked over the ruckus, slashed another goblin down.

"Kyona." She answered simply before rushing away into battle.

It was the same over and over again all the way through the caves. Raven lost count at how many goblins slew, it was enough to make Azog cringe. These goblins were a valuable back up army. She simply followed the mass of dwarves led by that tall old man.

They had almost reached the other side of a wooden bridge when the goblin king burst up onto the bridge. He swung his skull topped scepter at the old man, causing his to fall backward onto the dwarves.

"What are you going to do now, wizard!" He taunted.

The old wizard simply stepped forward, poked the big goblin in the eye with his staff then slashed his stomach open.

"That'll do it…" the goblin kind nodded, it was quickly over when the wizard slashed his throat.

Then, to their horror, the bridge they were standing on started to come loose. Soon enough they were sliding down the ravine towards the steadily growing ground below them. With a slam the broken bridge hit the ground, jarring the dwarves and Raven for a moment.

"Well that could have been worse!" Bofur commented sarcastically before the corpse of the goblin king crashed on top of them.

"You've got ta be JOKING!" Dwalin yelled as he started to free himself from the broken wood.

Soon Raven felt herself being pulled from the rubble by Thorin. He quickly checked her up and down for wounds.

"LOOK!" Kíli yelled. Raven looked up only see hundreds almost thousands of goblins running down the ravine that they had just slid down.

"Only one thing can save us now, daylight!" the wizard yelled.

He waved for the company to follow him. Raven started to smell fresh air, the outside world was close. They followed the old wizard to a small winding tunnel where sunlight was starting to filter through. The dwarves burst out from the small cramped tunnel into the fading sunlight. They ran like madmen down a steep hill into some tall pines. They started to slow, she heard the wizard counting the dwarves.

"Where is Bilbo? Hmm, where is our hobbit?" The tall old man asked, panic beginning to build in his eyes.

Accusations started flying around between the dwarves

"I thought I saw him slip away when they first corralled us!" Nori exclaimed.

"We will not be seeing our hobbit again." Thorin said darkly "He has though of nothing but his soft bed and warm hearth ever since he left home! Mr. Baggins saw his chance and he took it, he is long gone." A small silence followed in the company. Then, unexpectedly Bilbo stepped from behind a tree and said.

"Nope, he isn't."

The dwarves all made sounds of relief and started asking questions. Bilbo was acting quite suspicious in Raven's opinion.

"Ah, but what does it matter! He is back."

"It does matter!" Thorin said indignantly, "Why did you come back?" He asked the hobbit directly.

Bilbo then went on a long touching speech that he would help them reclaim their home… So that was their mission, to reclaim Erebor. Raven smirked with this new bit of information.

Her heart stopped when she heard the wailing howl of a warg.

**"Run them down! Tear them to pieces!"** Azog's voice echoed down from the canyon. Dread filled Raven's heart; her time with the dwarves was drawing to a close.

"Out of the frying pan…" Thorin said, panic evident on his face.

"…And into the fire. Run!" The wizard finished.


	7. Trees Can Bite

**Chapter Seven**

**Trees Can Bite**

* * *

All manner of curses were going through Raven's head as they ran. She couldn't believe that they had been found so quickly, or in a more _perfect_ place. They had come to a cliff which had tall pines scattered about.

In other words, they were cornered.

Raven saw the speedy forms of wargs coming down through the trees behind them. The large wolf like creatures soon caught up with the company. Raven winced as they slew the wargs; she had known a couple of them. The dwarves started to look desperately for somewhere to hide.

"Up into the trees!" The wizard yelled.

If Raven hadn't been 'fearing for her life' then she would have been doubled over with laughter at the dwarves climbing trees. Poor Bombur could barely get his legs up. She scaled a nearby tree with ease, putting her up beside Thorin. He was shouting for Bilbo (who was trying to get his sword out of a dead wargs head). Only after the hobbit had climbed into a tree did he turn to her.

"Are you alright?" He murmured.

"I'm fine." She replied. But her mind was other places; she had just seen a flash of white through the trees.

The wargs pulled back to around a large boulder just as Azog stepped from the shadows. Thorin gasped with disbelief as he moved a pine branch away to see the pale orc.

"Azog…" He gasped softly, "It cannot be!" He shook his head.

Azog ran his hook through his wargs fur and smelt the air.

**"Do you smell it? Fear, I remember you father reeked of it, Thorin son of Thraín."** Azog smirked in victory at Thorin, but his gaze drifted to the girl balanced delicately on the branch beside him. He paused for a moment before pointing at Thorin with his mace.

**"That one is mine. Kill the others!"**

A wave of fierce wargs rushed forward tearing and biting at the pines in which the dwarves were perched in. The first two pines had started to crack and bend beneath the vicious onslaught of the wargs. The dwarves from those two trees fell into the tree Raven sat in. Of course the wargs didn't know not to attack that particular pine so they continued to slam, tear, and bite at that pine. Now this tree must have been dryer than the others because it was sending out many more splinters and fragments than any of the other trees. Soon their tree started to fall, and in the process sent off a particularly nasty volley of large splinters, one of which hit Raven in the lower rib cage. She hissed in pain, but brushed it off, it wasn't that bad, she'd live.

Raven heard Azog laugh when their tree started to lean into the tree growing at the very edge of the cliff. At this point Raven was hanging awkwardly off one of the outer braches. She turned and locked eyes with Azog and gave him a 'you're going to regret this later' look. Before she could fall to the wargs below she was grabbed by the back of her cloak by Fíli who hoisted her to safety. She murmured under her breath, she was trying to avoid and dwarven physical contact. It would make Azog really unhappy, especially since it would ruin his great mood because the line of Durin had been wiped out.

Oh.

That thought made Raven's stomach turn in sadness. Before the sun had risen tomorrow Fíli, Kíli, and Thorin would be dead. Actually, all these kind dwarves would be dead. That made her oddly very sad.

She was jolted out of her sad musings when Thorin shouted for her to jump. She jumped nimbly onto the now standing alone pine on the edge of the cliff. The wargs were coming back for another go when suddenly a flaming pinecone came shooting down from above; it was soon followed by many more. The flames had created a fire wall between the wargs and the dwarves.

Now Azog was _really _angry. The wargs were held at bay for now, the dwarves were having a brief moment of celebration when there was a resounding _crack _followed by a groan and then their tree started to fall. It fell back out over open air, Raven's eyes practically popped out of her head when she looked down. The tree stopped when it lay level with the ground. Raven began to notice more of an uncomfortable aching pain in her lower ribcage.

-oOo-

Azog sat on his warg watching them, or well, watching Raven. He was starting to get nervous, if that tree went down then she went with it. He motioned for the wargs to stay back. He noticed the one dwarf had started to pull up onto the trunk of the tree. He smirked when he identified that dwarf to be Oakenshield. The dwarf king had a gleaming elvish blade and the oaken branch he had used at the battle of Azanulbizar.

The fool was going to face him down.

-oOo-

Thorin knew that this fight was unfair, but he had to do something. He took one last look at Kyona who was struggling to climb up onto the trunk of the pine; he would die without her ever knowing his feelings towards her. But none of that mattered now; he must face down this orc scum and end him, if he could. His chance of survival was unlikely. Thorin brandished his sword and he slid on the shield by which he was named. He started to walk down the length of the tree trunk, before breaking into a run. He barely heard Balin cry out to him. All his focus was on the now gloating pale orc in front of him.

-oOo-

Raven watched in horror as Thorin ran to face Azog. While Azog was riding his warg there was no way Thorin could beat him. This made Raven's heart clench. Thorin was going to die and there was nothing she could do about it. Movement beside her caught her attention for a brief moment; Bilbo was getting up onto the trunk. Her attention quickly changed when she heard a sickening crack along with Thorin's cry of pain. Azog had hit him upside the chin with his mace. The dwarf was now trying to regain the air which he had lost in his lungs from both the fall and the hit. Raven grimaced when Azog turned Azazal around and came back for another go. But this time the warg simply plucked Thorin up and shook him like a rag doll. The warg ceased its shaking long enough for Thorin to smack her with his sword. The white warg gave out a howl of pain before throwing Thorin away.

During this time the dwarves were starting to recoup. They were all distracted by both the fight and staying on the tree. This gave Raven a quick time to slide up unseen onto the branch and head for the shadow of a still standing pine. Her breath was in short shallow gasps and her skin was flushed. _'Why on earth am I out of breath?' _she asked herself.

Raven searched around the trunk of the tree for something that would serve her purpose. At last she found a flat piece of flint the size of her hand. She drew her knife and with one quick jab stabbed her finger, making blood start to pour out. In haste she scrawled six messy letters with her bloody finger.

'_Erebor' _

She nodded then looked up to see Thorin get thrown a few yards through the air by the white warg. She let a small grimace escape her lips when he landed. By that time Azog had caught sight of her. He locked eyes with her, his features clearly asking what she was doing. She waved the little rock into the air; he saw it and gave a barely audible nod. She tossed the rock into the ashes.

-oOo-

His eyes graced her body, obviously making sure wasn't hurt. But his fear was recognized; she had a great deal of blood trailing down the right side of her body, beginning on her lower rib cage. Azog tried to see the cause of her wound but the shadow of the tree hid the cause of her wound. He knew she would be alright, she had had much worse.

**"Bring me the dwarf's head."** He said calmly, staying composed after seeing Raven with all that blood on her.

The commanded orc got down off his warg and strutted over to Thorin, who was desperately trying to grab his sword to protect himself. The orc lined up his sword before raising it above his head. But Azog wasn't watching it, he was watching Raven. Her normally fierce grey eyes were now full of remorse and sadness. When the orc raised his sword she closed her eyes, so she wouldn't see him killed. But the blow never came.

A blur of blue and brown had come crashing into the orc. Raven's jaw dropped, it was Bilbo. Then she started to laugh, little Bilbo had just saved Thorin's life. The dwarf king passed out after Bilbo had come flying in. Raven wondered if it had been from shock of their 'burglar' attacking an orc. Azog scoffed in anger when Bilbo stood between him and Thorin's body, waving his tiny blue sword around randomly. Raven had stopped laughing when her side gave her a sharp bout of pain and Azog shot her a glare. Oops, he had heard her.

Just as the wargs were about to spring on Bilbo a wave of dwarves came hacking and slashing away. Raven slipped back to the tree, her head starting to spin. She knew this feeling, she was losing blood. She stole a glance at her side and gasped, it was worse than she thought. No matter, as long as she didn't start coughing up blood than she would be fine. She leaned against a tree, but then she felt a familiar sensation, someone was watching her. She flicked her head back for a quick second. It was Gandalf, the wizard. He was watching her with upmost suspicion; she would need to be careful around him.

Then something unexpected happened. There was a falcon like screech and giant eagles started to pluck up wargs and throw them off the cliff. Their mighty wings spread the flames onto the wargs – who were trying to escape. Azog had pulled back to avoid the onslaught of giant birds. After many of the wargs had been terminated, the eagles turned to picking the dwarves from the cliff side. Before she could resist an eagle pick her up with its talons and dropped her over the side of the cliff.

She was weightless and she was falling to her doom below, she realized she was screaming. It all ended when she landed on the back of another eagle. She was shaking, that was the most terrifying experience she had ever been in. The eagles took into majestic flight away from the burning cliff side. The last thing Raven heard before she lost consciousness was a loud bellow of rage from Azog behind them.

-oOo-

A strange warbling noise woke Raven. The wind was blowing through her hair and the sun was rising. A small cry escaped her lips when she realized she was flying through the air… on a giant eagle. Then the night's events came rushing back to her. She looked up to the lead eagles where Thorin was lifeless and pale in the eagles clutches. Fear gripped her for a moment before she shook it off. If Thorin was dead her father's mission would be complete. The eagles began to descend toward a high rock jutting up in the middle of a lush green valley.

The lead eagle gently laid Thorin on the rock, the other dwarves followed in suit. Raven's eagle was in the very back of the flock. She was set down a good ways away from the dwarves who were busy watching Gandalf waving a hand in front of Thorin's face. The dwarf king sat up and looked wildly around. Relief flooded through Raven, as he stood up stiffly.

Then he unexpectedly started to rant at the hobbit. Raven felt a little bubble of rage, that little hobbit had just saved his life and all he could do was yell at him! But Raven's rage was quickly ebbed away when the dwarf took the hobbit into a breath crushing hug. A small smile formed on her lips. She remembered when Thorin had held her close when the rock giants had been battling, and wanted him to do it again.

Then out of the blue a violent wave of coughing hit her. She covered her mouth with her hands, but then her hand felt wet and sticky. Her petite scarred hand pulled away from her mouth, covered in red blood. _'Oh no…'_

-oOo-

After all these years seeing Erebor was a relief, even if it was from hundreds of miles away. Thorin felt at peace, even though his deadly enemy still lived. But the joy was short lived when he heard a small cry of pain. He turned quickly to Kyona clutching her side and coughing up blood. All color left his face, he was beside her before he even realized it.

"Kyona, look at me. Do not close your eyes!" Thorin murmured as her held her in his arms. The entire right side of her body was red with blood. The cause of this accident was a piece of wood impaled into her lower ribcage, sticking out a good four inches. Dread filled Thorin's heart. She had lost a lot of blood and it had gotten into her lungs.

She had little chance if an infection claimed her.

-oOo-

Azog kicked the ashes with his foot. Searching for the rock which Raven had written on, if he was correct it was probably the dwarf's destination. His foot hit a small flat rock, he knelt and picked it up. He smelt it, it was Raven's blood. It took him a moment to decipher the word on scrawled in now brown blood. But when he did he grinned.

_'Erebor'_

The dwarves were trying to reclaim Erebor. The chance that the dragon was dead was unlikely, but no matter. If the dwarves slew the dragon and the dragon slew them. He would be there to pick up the pieces, and their gold.

This was working out quite nicely.


	8. A Moment of Paradise

**Chapter Eight**

**A Moment of Paradise**

* * *

Panic had completely encased Thorin's mind. There was a six inch piece of wood impaled into Kyona's lower ribcage, it had punctured her lung. Her eyes were glazed over and unseeing, she was no longer consciously thinking and had lost blood to the point of alarm.

"Gandalf, you have to help her!" Thorin yelled to the wizard, trying to wake her.

"Who is she Thorin?" Gandalf asked, trying to calm the dwarf down.

"It doesn't matter, just help her!"

"I will not help this woman until I know why she has joined the company!" The wizard said his voice raising.

Thorin calmed for a moment, his jaw was still clenched.

"I do not know who she is or why she has come to us, but you must save her. She is a part of the company now."

Without another word Gandalf knelt beside her limp body. He murmured some magic over her. Her body seemed to relax and her eyes closed.

"Her wounds are not life threatening at the moment. But if they are left unattended they may become very grave indeed." Gandalf said, his brow furrowed.

"Excuse me, Mister Gandalf, but how exactly will we get down?" Ori asked politely.

"If you look around behind you Master Dwarf, you will see a small stone stairway cut into the rock." Gandalf said, not taking his eyes off Thorin and Kyona.

Ori blushed deeply at his foolishness. Gandalf told the dwarves to start making their way down the stairs, they would follow soon after. The dwarves took the hint and started in single file down the small stone stairs. Meanwhile, Gandalf was absolutely astonished at Thorin's actions toward the injured girl. He seemed to be completely in love with her.

The old Grey wizard shook his head.

"Thorin, be careful of her. I do not think she can be trusted."

Thorin shot Gandalf a fierce glare.

"I trust her, so should you. She has proven herself to be of value to the company."

"Your feelings cloud your judgment, Thorin. I will continue to keep a warily eye on her. We should make our way to the others." Gandalf said as he made his way over to Kyona. He prepared to pick her up when Thorin said.

"No, I will carry her."

"Thorin, you're injured!"

"No matter, she is in worse shape than I."

Thorin picked the unconscious girl up bridal style and continued to the stone stairs.

-oOo-

The dwarves' trip down the Carrock was rather smooth and uneventful, a strange turn of events since their past day of nerve racking adventures. When they reached the bottom of the rock a small paradise awaited them. A clearing in the shadow of the great Carrock short lush grass dotted with clover grew in plenty, and a beautiful clear river flowed down and around into the forests in the regions around them.

Thorin lay Kyona gently down into a thick patch of clovers. The small white flowers lay dotted around her like a bed. The dwarven king wasn't sure he had ever seen a more beautiful sight than this girl peacefully lying in a bed of white flowers. He smiled softly. But his smile faded when he saw the blood on her right side. He called Óin over.

"I'll have to get some herbs, all my supplies were lost to the goblin filth." Óin said.

"Alright, get Fíli and Kíli to help." Thorin ordered.

A while after Fíli, Kíli and Óin came back with the correct herbs. Soon Óin had made an entire bowl full of salve. Luckily, Gandalf had a good amount of bandages in his satchel. Óin began the process of cleaning her wounds. He had tried to get Thorin to leave, but the stubborn dwarf would not leave her side. Óin just sighed and began to cut away the bloodied dress around her wound. After they had removed most of the dress they were amazed at the array of scars that littered her torso.

"She is so young! But yet it looks as if she has seen a thousand battles!" Óin exclaimed as her finished wrapping the bandages around her wound.

Of course, they didn't know she had seen more battle in her life time then they could ever imagine.

Óin huffed.

"Her clothes are pretty much ruined; she needs new ones to keep clean."

"We will save her the humiliation and wait till she wakes to give her new clothes, in the meanwhile, I believe we are all due for a bath." Thorin said.

Soon after all the dwarves were stripped to their loin cloths (they had decided to keep some sort of modesty just in case Lady Kyona awoke) splashing around in the river… all except Thorin who had kept his composure and was simply dipping in the water. He had started to feel intense pain from his warg bites. He probably should have asked Óin to treat them, but it would wound his pride to show weakness.

Fíli and Kíli had started a grand water battle and were finally getting the older dwarves to join in, reluctantly. But by the end even Balin was splashing the other dwarves in the face with water. After their water activities were over they decided to dress and recline in the grass and catch the late morning rays of light.

It was around this time that Kyona started to stir.

-oOo-

The first thing Raven smelled when she woke up was pipe smoke. Her vision was spinning and she tried to sit up, but that effort was stopped by a sharp pain in her chest. She hissed in pain and collapsed back on the ground. But instead of feeling the ground beneath her she felt someone's hands catch her. She turned and saw Thorin smiling softly down at her.

"It's about time you woke." He said.

"How long was I out?" She asked.

"Not too long. You haven't missed much, besides a bath."

A bath sounded oddly good to her at the moment, she normally didn't bathe at all.

"How is my side? I didn't expect to wake up again." Raven said with a sort of nonchalantness that shocked Thorin.

"It is fine; you will need new clothes though. We have found some, but they may be a bit large for you." Thorin handed her a pair of pants and a folded linen shirt. She nodded in thanks.

"Could you help me up?" She said after a moment, realizing that she couldn't get up.

Thorin took her under the arms and lifted her with ease to her feet. She wobbled a bit but Thorin caught her balance.

"Would you like me to escort you?" He said in a gentlemanly fashion, she let a small smile escape her lips. He led her away into the woods where there was a thick grove of bushes.

"I will let you be, call if you need me." He said. She nodded.

As soon as he had left she started to pry the bloodied dress off her body. When she had gotten it off she wandered over to the concealed piece of the river. She washed off the blood and grime. The shirt and pants were much too big for her; she had to use her belt even keep her new pants up. The shirt started to fall off her shoulder; she huffed and tied the leather strings located in the front of the shirt. It only tightened a little. _'Oh well.'_ She sighed as she swung her cloak over shoulders and tucked the excess pants into her boots.

"Thorin!" She called out softly.

He was by her side within moments. She inwardly smiled, _'He is very loyal.'_ She mused. Then a realization hit her. Thorin was alive; her whole mission was centered on Thorin's death. But here he was, holding her arm, leading her along like a helpless child. Before they came out of the trees she released his arm and said,

"I'll be okay now."

A small look of hurt flashed through his steely blue eyes but it was gone quickly as it had come. A part of her wished that he was still there, holding her arm, but her other side was glad the dwarvish filth was no longer touching her.

They walked back into the grassy clearing. Light cheers from the nearby dwarves erupted; they waved their pipes in the air. She gave a slight smile to them.

"How ya feelin' lass?" Bofur asked.

"I am fine, sore, but alright." She replied.

"Well I'm glad we didn't lose you, besides, you're a part of the company now!" Balin said.

It was official; she was a part of their company now. It was a good feeling, they trusted her fully now, much easier to betray them. Even though that was the last thing Kyona wanted to do.


	9. A Skin Changer?

**Chapter Nine**

** A Skin Changer?**

* * *

About midday was when the dwarves started complaining about food. After their tumble into Goblin Town they were left without any baggage or food. That was also around the time Kyona started to feel feverish. Her wound was giving her a considerable amount of pain. But she kept refusing to go ask Óin about it. For her prides sake she wouldn't let a dwarf tend to her wounds.

The wizard, Gandalf, had also dampened the mood by saying that he would be leaving their company soon. This made all the dwarves groan and beg for him to stay. They offered him gold and jewels from Erebor once they reclaimed it. But the old man's mind was set.

"I will not vanish this very instant. I will give you a day or two more, enough time to help you out of your current plight. We've got no baggage, food or ponies to ride. You are still many miles away from the path you should be following. Very few people live out here. But there is _somebody_ that I know of, he lives not far from here. But we must hurry, we should not like to get caught out here at night, he can be quite appalling when he is angry." Without another word the wizard turned away and began to lead the hungry dwarves through the thick forest.

The dwarves started to ask questions of this _somebody _Gandalf kept talking about. Kyona learned that this man was a skin changer. Sometimes he was a giant black bear and sometimes he was a large made with a thick black beard. He also told them that they must be very polite and he would introduce them two by two. She should really like to meet this skin changer; he may pose a very dangerous threat to Azog.

All the while the wizard talked, Kyona kept feeling worse and worse. She was feeling unseasonably warm and her wound was throbbing. Kyona felt her face contorting into a grimace of pain. Her wound was now throbbing like a heartbeat, except instead of a gentle thump felt like a knife plunging into her sternum. She began to fall behind, her hand was clutching at her side. She was the last in the group now, Bilbo had just passed her. She barely noticed the hobbit scurry up to the front of the line and speak hurriedly to Thorin. The dwarf king looked back at her and started to come her way.

"Kyona, are you alright? Do you need to rest?" He asked gently putting the back of his hand against her sweating forehead.

"I'm fine." She hissed, trying to pick up the pace.

"No, you aren't. I will get Óin to take a look at your wound." He said before waving Óin back.

The company stopped and looked back, worry flashed across their faces at seeing Kyona doubled with pain. Óin came over to her.

"You have a fever and your wound is throbbing isn't it?" Óin said knowingly.

She nodded.

"I feared as much. Your wound is most certainly infected; the splinters from the wood are probably still lingering inside the wound. I fear that I do not have the means to heal it." Oin said solemnly.

"Beorn will have many rare herbs and salves we can use. We must pick up the pace. Thorin, stay with her, and if her pride allows it, carry her." Gandalf said.

Kyona scoffed.

"I can walk fine on my own, thank you!"

"Lass, if you keep walking it will only make it worse." Bofur advised.

Kyona glared at him, then Gandalf, then Thorin.

"Fine. But only for a little ways." She declared angrily.

Thorin came over to her and picked her up carefully. Her jaw was tensed in anger, and she kept her body at ridged as possible. But soon her head started to swim and her vision blurred, then she slipped into a feverish sleep against Thorin's chest.

-oOo-

Thorin felt her cheek suddenly lull against his chest. He looked down and saw her sound asleep against his chest. He smiled softly; it felt as if she belonged there. Her features were relaxed and peaceful. Thorin had never seen her face up this close before. She had many small scars littering her face, just like the rest of her body. He wondered why in Durin's name she had so many scars! It was disturbing.

Soon they came to a place where a great many wild flowers grew in thick patches. And there were bees buzzing around, they were _huge!_

"We are getting near," Gandalf said, "We are on the edge of his bee-pastures."

After more walking they came to a grove of very thick oaks and beyond them was a thick thorn hedge of which they could not see past.

"You had better wait here. When I whistle you will come in pairs, mind you, every five minutes, except for Bombur, he will count as two. Come Mister Baggins!" Gandalf said with authority.

"What of Kyona?" Thorin asked.

Gandalf paused for a moment, and then said.

"Come, give her to me, I will make sure she is properly taken care of."

Thorin was reluctant, but after some convincing he gave the sleeping girl to Gandalf. The wizard, the hobbit and the sleeping girl made their way along the hedge until they came to a wooden gate, high and broad, beyond they could see gardens and a cluster of low wooden buildings, some thatched and made of unshaped logs; barns, stables, sheds and a long low wooden house. On the westward side of the garden sat rows and rows of bee houses. The sound of many bees buzzing to and fro filled the hot summer air.

They pushed open the wooden gate and walked down the path leading towards the low wooden house. Some horses, very sleek and well groomed came trotting towards them. Then they turned and galloped away towards the buildings.

"They have gone to tell him of the arrival of strangers." Gandalf commented.

They soon reached a courtyard within the walls of the house. A great oak sat in the middle, and in front of it stood a great man, wearing a woolen tunic down to his knees and leaning on an ax.

"Ugh! Here they are!" He said to the horses "They don't look dangerous at all! You can be off!" He laughed a great rolling laugh, then his tone changed and he asked.

"Who are you and what do you want?"

"I am Gandalf."

"Never hear of him," growled Beorn, "And who is this lovely young lady and this most interesting little fellow." The great man bent down and looked at Bilbo and Kyona.

"This is Mr. Baggins, a hobbit of a most respectable family. And this is –"He paused, "Is Kyona, but we had a most unfortunate run in with orcs which left her with a most damaging wound, if you would be so kind as to tend to her." Gandalf explained.

"Orcs? That is dark indeed. Right, well let me call Bluebell." He mumbled before whistling. Barely a moment later a long bodied, grey, dog came trotting up to him. Beorn seemed to speak to him. The dog ran away quickly.

But instead of the dog returning, a small red fox came trotting up to Beorn. He gave the fox a very warm smile. And right before their eyes the fox morphed into a beautiful woman wearing a blue woolen dress. She had fox red hair and playful brown eyes.

"This is my wife, Bluebell. She'll take care of the lass." Beorn introduced.

Bluebell smiled and took Kyona gently from Gandalf's arms.

"I will take good care of her." She said in a very soft musical voice. And with that she carried Kyona off into the house.

"Now, tell me your tale." Beorn said to them.

-oOo-

When Kyona woke she didn't know where she was. She was lying in a comfortable bed, smelling like honey and lilies, and the pain in her side was almost nonexistent.

"Good, you have awoken!" A pretty voice said from across the room. Kyona's head snapped towards the voice.

The most beautiful and enchanting woman Kyona had ever seen stood smiling at the foot of her bed.

"My name is Bluebell, and I have been taking care of you." She explained.

"Kyona." The girl replied.

"I am glad you have come round, the rest of your company is dining with my husband."

"Alright." Kyona said, not knowing what to say.

"I have picked out a dress for you to wear; I believe it will suit you well." Bluebell said handing her a lilac wool dress.

Kyona gasped softly, she had never seen a more beautiful dress.

"Thank you." Kyona said, actually remembering her manners.

"You're very welcome, would you like me to help you?"

"Uh, um, sure." Kyona had never had a kind woman in her life before.

Soon Kyona was dressed in the lilac dress. She found that she had also been bathed properly; her hair had never been softer or more cooperative.

"Follow me; I will take you to the dwarves." Bluebell said.

Kyona followed Bluebell through the long wooden house. They heard the cheery laughter of the dwarves through a large wooden door. Kyona took a deep breath and the door was pushed opened by Bluebell.

-oOo-

Despite the cheery mood Thorin still felt glum. He had not heard a word of Kyona since the early afternoon. But his fears were silenced when the great wooden doors swung open and Kyona came into the room. She was wearing a lilac dress that came to her ankles, her hair was combed and washed and it flowed around her back like a cloak. Thorin felt his jaw slacken, she was,_ beautiful. _If he had not been transfixed by her beauty he would have seen the knowing looks pass between the members of his company.

-oOo-

This was the weirdest place Kyona had ever been in. She was ushered to an open chair beside Thorin by a gray dog… A DOG. Her eyes were wide as saucers.

"Aye, bet ya never seen that before lass," Bofur smiled from across the table, he looked as if he had had too much mead (which he had).

"Neither have we till today!"

Kyona just nodded and reached for a glazed roll, she bit into it. Her mind went blank; it was the most amazing thing she had ever tasted! She had soon eaten her fill of rolls… and mead. Little did she know what this amazing honey gold drink did to one's mind. Soon she was just sitting there, smiling with a silly smile on her face. This made the dwarves chuckle, it was obviously her first time drinking mead.

Later in the evening the dwarves had calmed, and Kyona had fall asleep with her face rested on the table. Thorin smiled and picked her up, carrying her over to one of the many straw stuffed beds. He laid her down gently and kissed her forehead and stroked her hair away from her face. And he once again wondered where she had come from, and what had made her so cold to the world.


	10. Baby Bears and the Hard Reality of Love

**Chapter Ten**

**Baby Bears and the Hard Reality of Love**

* * *

The sun filtered through the smoke hole of Beorn's home, waking a slightly hung-over Kyona. She grunted and sat up, groaning at the throbbing pain in her head and ribcage. Once her eyes cleared of sleep she realized that she and Bilbo were the only ones still asleep. This made her quickly swing her legs out of bed, she had to rest for a moment, her head was spinning.

She followed the sound of dwarven voices out to a lovely veranda.

"Ahh, there's one of lazybones!" Bofur smiled.

Kyona just made a sound that sounded like "Mrrrrrpgh."

"It's alright lass, we all remember our first time drinking." Dori said reassuringly.

"What?" Kyona asked blinking rapidly, very confused.

"You got intoxicated last night…" He said.

"Intoxicated?"

"You drank too much mead."

"Mead – No! Not that delicious honey drink? That made me like this?!" Kyona said angrily.

All the dwarves chuckled in amusement, even Thorin had to smile.

"You could have warned me…" She grumbled.

"Where the fun in that?" Bofur smirked as he stood up and went over to her.

"You had better get some breakfast lass, before Bombur eats it all. I'm gonna go wake up Mister Bilbo."

Kyona walked over and took the conveniently open seat beside Thorin. She saw a couple of the dwarves smirk. _'Wonder what's so amusing to them…' _ She thought.

Breakfast was absolutely amazing (especially for someone who hadn't had fresh fruit in over a decade). There were fresh biscuits with honey, strawberries and cream, and a lovely assortment of other fruits and pastries.

Kyona ate till she felt like she going to pop. Bilbo had shown up halfway through the meal, looking worried. Bofur smiled and told them that he had informed the hobbit that Bombur had almost eaten all the food. This made the dwarves laugh, their moods lightened by the fruity mead that was served with breakfast. Kyona didn't go near it, not after she had felt the after effects.

Soon everyone had eaten, and they were bored. Everyone just sat there in an awkward silence which had not been broken in some while.

"We should have a competition!" Fíli said enthusiastically, breaking the silence.

"What would be competing in?" Balin asked, having doubts about the young dwarf's idea.

"A test of arms, to see who is the best fighter among us is!" Kíli piped in, a grin lighting his face.

_'Oh dear...' _Kyona thought.

"That sounds like a good plan, besides; we have nothing better to do." Bofur said.

-oOo-

Kyona stood with her knife at her side, watching the dwarves strap their weapons on. They were standing in Beorn's courtyard, preparing to have a so called 'tournament'. Kyona wasn't sure why they were about to fight each other, they had never done so before.

"Alright, the rules to this completion are simple. No killing or mortally wounding one another. In order to win the match you must disarm your opponent and they must yield." Balin announced.

_'No killing? Odd, I may as well learn their ways. Perhaps I can find the weakest links of the company.'_ Kyona thought. Orcs always killed each other when they fought! Oh well, might as well try this out.

The first round looked like this.

First round:

Bombur vs. Dori

Nori vs. Bifur

Bofur vs. Balin

Dwalin vs. Fili

Kili vs. Oin

Ori vs. Balin

Dwalin vs. Kyona

Thorin had decided to be a sort of referee since they didn't have an even number of fighters (Bilbo had gone quite pale at the idea of fighting a dwarf).

The fights were all fair and good sport, and very amusing. The dwarves would constantly talking smack to each other while fighting. Everything was alright until the last fight, Kyona and Dwalin. Of course she had to be paired with the tallest strongest dwarf of the company!

Dwalin prepared his hammer and Kyona readied her hunting knife. Only if he had known how well she could use that ordinary little knife. Dwalin took the first swing; she could tell he was holding back. She dodged his swing easily, before rolling on the grassy ground to avoid his second, much faster hit. She dodged all his hits, constantly spinning and ducking. She had taken out much, _much_ worse opponents than this… But she had always stabbed them in any weak spot she could find. She couldn't stab Dwalin. So she had to come up with an alternative, and his hammer was too heavy for her to just kick out of his hands.

So she finally made her move. When he came around for another swing she jumped past the heavy hammer and sliced his arm, not bad enough to cause him too much harm, just distract him. He grunted in discomfort. She took this moment to kick his other arm, she heard a nice thud. He now grunted louder and tried to retaliate but she kicked the slice on his other arm. He dropped the hammer. She moved with the speed and grace of someone who has lived their life in an arena. Before anyone could react her knife was touching his throat.

Silence.

The company was in pure utter shock.

"Do you yield?" She said in a low, cold tone.

Dwalin looked her in the eye; he saw something there that he wished never to see again. A pitiless glint of malice, if it hadn't been against the rules she would have killed him.

"Yes, you got me fair and square."

The girl gave a twisted smirk.

-oOo-

The smirk on Kyona's face gave Thorin shivers down his spine. She could have killed him, that twig of a girl had just made Dwalin yield. But what unnerved him more was how familiar the smirk was, as if she had learned it from someone he knew… He took a deep breath.

"All of the winner will be moving on to the next round. Winners, take a break." Thorin announced. His eyes caught with Balin's, they were thinking the same thought. He walked over to where Kyona was looking at her blade.

"Kyona, come with me." He said.

A look a pure terror went through her eyes; he wasn't that intimidating was he? They walked away a few yards.

"How did you do it?" He asked her.

"What, that? Pfft, that was nothing." She said, obviously a little nervous.

Thorin's eyes bore into her, assessing her.

"Where did you learn to fight?"

She coughed and her shoulders twitched.

"Does that matter?"

"Yes, it matters greatly. You have been keeping your past hidden from us for too long!" He said, his voice raising.

"It is none of your concern!" She growled.

"It is every right my concern, you're a part of this company now, we deserve to know who you are!"

Her eyes went out of focus for a moment, his eyes narrowed in concern.

"Are you alright?"

Her eyes snapped back to him with a fierce glare that startled him.

"I am fine, why should you even care!? Only if you knew, fool." She hissed before turning on her heel and storming away. Thorin thought he heard her hissing something in another language under her breath as she stormed off.

Thorin stood, his mouth open. No one had every dare call him a fool before, especially not in that viscous manner. Her words stung him more than they should have _"Why should you even care?" _Why did he care? Then the realization hit him hard.

Because he loved her.

That simple word, _love, _was the reason for everything. He should have seen it sooner; he mentally slapped himself for not realizing it. He had never understood the feeling of love towards a person of the opposite sex. Dwarves only love once, and he had never found a woman that had caught his interest before. Not until now. And she hated him.

-oOo-

_'Stupid, stupid, stupid!' _Kyona mentally punched herself over and over again. She saw the hurt in his steely blue eyes as she had said those harsh words to him. Her heart fluttered in her chest every time she was near that dwarf! WHY? It made her so angry. She didn't understand what she was feeling. She racked her brain for any sort of information on the symptoms she was feeling. Then, suddenly a small memory hit her.

_*Flashback*_

_"Momma?" A young Kyona said to the woman walking beside her through the streets of their town. _

_Her mind could not stop thinking about the scene she had witnessed earlier that day. She had seen a young man come up to a young woman and give her a flower, the woman had grabbed the young man and kissed him and said "I love you!" _

_"What is love?" _

_In her four years of life she had never heard someone say that to someone else before. _

_"Love is when a man and a woman feel strongly for another, and then they get married and have children." Her mother said shortly._

_"What does it feel like to fall in love?"The inquisitive child asked._

_"It feels like you have bugs crawling around in your stomach every time you're around that person. But it goes away once you tell that person you love them. But if they don't love you back then you feel like you have been stabbed in the chest. Anymore stupid questions?" her mother said grouchily._

_The little girl's eyes were wide. Love seemed awful! _

_"No momma." She said in the expected polite tone. _

_*End flashback*_

Cold icy horror clenched Kyona's heart. '_No, no, no… That's impossible. I couldn't love him! He is my father's arch nemesis!' _But yet, it did feel as if she had bugs crawling around in her stomach… Kyona felt as if she was about to puke. She reached the rest of the dwarves.

"Are you alright lass?" Óin asked, he seemed wary.

"Oh yeah, I'm not feeling well… you all have fun, fighting." She said awkwardly. Eyes immediately turned to Thorin, some glares, and some worried glances.

As soon as she was out of the courtyard she ran. She didn't know where. She kept weaving in and out of the wooden buildings and out into a field of wild flowers. She kept running through the field till she came to the edge of the forest. The tall oaks beckoned her into their cool shadows. She slipped inside the forest and sat at the base of a tree.

She took deep breaths, calming herself from the bubble of panic that was welling up inside her. The horrible prickling sensation of tears threatened in her eyes. She felt the first sob start to well up in her throat when a child's voice called out.

"Hey, you, what are you doing in my forest!?"

Kyona stood up quickly and spun around, looking for the owner of the voice.

"I'm up here." It called out.

She looked up and jumped when she saw a wooden structure in the tall oak tree above her. A wooden rope latter came clattering down from the little fort, Kyona shrugged and started to climb. When she climbed up into the little hatch form which the latter had come she was greeted with a toy wooden sword to her neck.

"Who dares trespass in my house?!" A little boy with thick wild black hair said in a forced gruff tone.

"You let me in, I'm not trespassing." She said coolly.

The little boy visibly deflated.

"Ugh, you're right; I guess I'm so bored I just have to let strangers into my house."

"What's your name?" She asked this odd little child who looked quite familiar.

"Mahon, my pa is Beorn." He said bluntly.

Kyona's brow raised, '_A little skin changer…'_

"I'm pretty fierce." He bragged stretching his arms in a most amusing way.

It took a lot of will power for her not to grin. He was really adorable. His wild black hair stuck out in all directions and his mischievous brown eyes twinkled.

"What's your name?" He asked.

"Kyona, but everyone has started to call my Ky." She said.

"Blah, what a boring name! You need a nickname." He declared, narrowing his eyes at her, analyzing her appearance.

She let out a small bark of laughter at his comment, she liked this kid.

"How about Raven, you remind me of one." He said.

She stiffened… _How did he know…?_

"Um okay…"

"I think Princess Raven suits you well! You shall be the damsel in distress and I shall be the mighty prince who saves you from the evil orcs!" He declared with gusto.

_'Man this kid was really good.' _Kyona just stared at him in shock for a moment.

Then she coughed.

"What's wrong?

"Oh nothing, I would love to play." She forced a smile.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in the forest with Mahon. He was the most interesting child she had ever met (Not that she had met many). The first time they had played '_Damsel in Distress!' _where Mahon would rush in and fight imaginary orcs and save the helpless princess! But after that they played _'The Adventures of Princess Raven and the Dashing Prince Mahon!' _That was an interest game… At one point Mahon ran off behind a bush, and then came back as a baby bear. That startled Kyona quite a bit. But then the sun had started to set and the two adventures had to return to the homeland.

They talked and laughed, they were both covered in mud, leaves, and twigs when they came into the large area where the dwarves were staying. The wizard had returned and was blowing smoke rings of much verity.

-oOo-

Thorin was impatiently waiting for Gandalf to finish blowing his smoke rings and tell them what he had been doing when the door opened and in came Kyona and a little wild looking boy. They were laughing and smiling, his hand was grasped around hers.

"Where have you been all day?" Balin asked, a small smirk formed on his lips.

"Oh you know, fighting trolls, hunting nymphs, and meeting baby bears." She smiled. Truly smiled not some twisted smirk or forced smile.

The dwarves' eye brows rose.

"I also saved her from orcs." The kid smiled and nodded.

"Oh, I see. Quite the heroes." Bofur played along, grinning ear to ear.

"Mmm hmm, we were pretty awesome." The kid had a little proud smile on his face.

"Who might you be young man?" Balin asked.

"I'm Mahon the Daring of the Forest Kingdoms."

The dwarves tried not to chuckle.

"And she's Princess Raven of the Sky Kingdoms." He jerked a thumb at Kyona who did a very sarcastic curtsy with her dirtied lilac dress.

At that the dwarves could not contain their laughter.

Thorin let out a small grin; she was obviously very good with children. A little voice in the back of his mind said '_She would be a good queen…' _he immediately shook that thought away and turned his attention to the red-faced little boy beside Kyona, err, Princess Raven.

"IT'S NOT FUNNY!" Little Mahon yelled, the dwarves silenced in awe at the little boy whose body was starting to morph. Before a minute had passed the child was a baby black bear growling at them.

"Aww, you made him morph!" Kyona mused with a smirk.

"W-what…?" Nori stammered.

"He's Beorn's son, don't make him angry. You're lucky that his isn't bigger. Or you'd be bear food." Kyona teased.

"So our host has a son then." Balin said in awe.

"I have heard of this young man, quite the adventurer." Gandalf said.

The little bear's chest puffed out in pride.

The dwarves gave Kyona and the little skin changer warm smiles.

"I still can't believe that ya beat Dwalin today." Gloin commented, unhelpfully bringing up the earlier events of the day.

Gandalf's brow knitted.

"She did what?" He asked.

"She disarmed Dwalin with that toothpick of a knife!" Fíli said, grinning as he shook Dwalin's shoulders.

"Did she really…" Gandalf mused.

"I believe you still owe us an explanation of your whereabouts." Thorin said, taking them off the subject of today's battle.

"I think Lady Kyona and Master Mahon should go clean up and get some rest." Gandalf told them with a small smile.

Kyona nodded, waving her hand for the little bear to follow.

-oOo-

Little Mahon was tired, Kyona could tell in the way he walked. She was following the little bear through the long halls of Beorn's home. They soon came to a large room with all sorts of wooden weapons and toys. The girl smiled, this must be his room.

"Oh there you are Mahon! I was wondering where you had gone off to." Bluebell said, walking into the room from another entrance.

The little bear morphed back into his boy form.

"Hey mamma." He yawned as he walked over to her and climbed into her outstretched arms.

"I think its somebody's bedtime." The red haired woman smiled.

"But I don't wanna go to sleep! We had so much fun today!" Mahon protested.

"You and Kyona?" She asked.

"Yeah, we were out fighting trolls and hunting nymphs!" He grinned.

"I'm sure you were!" Bluebell said enthusiastically.

"Yeah…" He snuggled into her shoulder, his eyes closing.

Bluebell took her son over to low-lying bed in the corner of the room and laid the tired little boy down. Kyona tried to back out of the room quietly so she wouldn't disturb them.

"Where are you going?" Bluebells musical voice said.

"I was going to return to the dwarves."

Bluebell looked at her for a moment.

"I do not know your past but I can tell something in your life has made your spirit dark. I can see it when you're around the dwarves, but yet, I see you now, and you glow with happiness and light when around my son. You still have a good heart. And whatever has changed you does not control you fully. I want you to know that." Bluebell said gently.

For some reason Kyona felt the prick of tears.

"Do not cry child, you're loved by the dwarves, especially their leader, Thorin Oakenshield." Bluebell hugged her.

Kyona felt as if she had been shocked by lighting. _He couldn't love her, could he? He hated her, she knew this!_

"And I sense you feel the same for him."

"I don't understand!" Kyona cried.

"Love is a beautiful complicated thing. Speak to him, when the time is right you will know one another's feelings." Bluebell smiled softly and brushed Kyona's hair back.

"I will." Kyona's voice was merely a whisper.

-oOo-

Thorin couldn't sleep that night. He didn't know why but it was driving him crazy. So he decided that the best thing was for him to take a walk. The halls were dark and silent, not a menacing silent, but a peaceful resting silence.

He walked until he came to an open door. It lead out onto a veranda which was bathed in pale moonlight. He was surprised to see a figure sitting on a bench a few yards in front of him. Her legs were tucked up underneath her new crimson dress. Her hair fell down like a cloak behind her, the wind tugging at her slightly wavy tresses.

"Kyona." His voice was deep in the quiet night.

"Yes?" She replied softly, not looking at him.

"What are you doing out here, its late." He chided.

"I would ask you the same thing."

He sighed, she had him there.

The dwarf walked over to her bench she was sitting on and sat down beside her. She turned her head ever so slightly to look at him.

"I wanted to apologize for earlier. I had no right to disrespect you." He apologized.

"Apology accepted." She said cheerfully, un tucking her legs and facing him.

"Something else is on your mind though." She said pensively.

Thorin sighed.

"Yes, you confuse me Kyona. I don't understand you." He said.

"The same for you Thorin Oakenshield."

"Well it is good that we are at an agreement."

"Why do you wish to reclaim Erebor?" She asked so suddenly that Thorin stiffened.

"H-how do know of our destination?"

"I'm pretty smart actually."

"I never doubted that." He said, noticing a small stray lock of hair on her forehead.

He reached out and brushed her hair back ever so gently. Her eyes were closed and a small shiver went down her back.

"I could braid your hair if you wish?" He said.

"I prefer my hair loose, but I suppose a small braid wouldn't hurt."

She shifted and turned her back to Thorin, tossing her long hair over her shoulder. She felt his fingers run through her hair. A tingle went down her spine at the thought of Azog finding out about this… he was rather protective of her hair. She never understood why though.

Thorin took the hair on the sides of her face and braided them, then pulling them back behind her head. He smiled, she looked beautiful. And then he felt a pang of possessiveness towards her. She was his, no other could have her. So he did one of the stupidest most wonderful moves of his life. He did a small braid; right on the left side of her neck, but what was different about this braid was the bead. A little silver bead that said to all those who knew its purpose.

_"She is mine."_


	11. A Sad Farewell and a Murky Hello

**Chapter Eleven**

**A Sad Farewell and a Murky Hello**

* * *

Kyona was surprisingly sad to be leaving Beorn's house. She would miss Mahon and Bluebell quite a lot, she would also miss the food but she tried not to place food over people.

"Miss Raven, please don't leave!" Mahon had begged, using his best puppy face.

"I must, I have no choice." She said softly to him, running her fingers over his wild black hair.

"Will you come back and visit me?"

"Only time will tell." She smiled, knowing in her heart that it would be very unlikely.

Kyona adjusted her new vest; it was dark grey wool which went down to a little above her knees. A white chemise and new trousers completed her new traveling outfit. She still kept her old black cloak and now worn leather boots, and, as always, her hunting knife. All in all it was a very comfortable outfit.

The bead in her hair was now a comfortable weight against her back, always present. She wondered what it was for, she had seen the other dwarves with beads in their beards and hair, but none of them looked like hers.

She smiled to Mahon who gave a meek smile in return. He took her hand gently and led her through the halls of his wooden home. They soon came to the courtyard where the dwarves were readying for their departure. She hadn't seen them since last night. Her stomach twisted oddly at seeing Thorin who was loading heavy packs onto a pretty white pony.

He saw her, but made no comment and kept his eyes on tightening the leather straps on the saddle. He knew it wouldn't be long till the other dwarves saw her bead. He wasn't sure if he had made the right move putting the claiming bead in her hair. Gandalf wouldn't be pleased.

Kyona walked over to Balin who was talking with Gandalf.

"Is there anything I can do?" She asked.

"Hmm, well I think you can help Fíli and Kíli with the ponies." He smiled at the girl.

She nodded in thanks before turning on her heel and going towards the brothers. But when she turned her hair turned with her, revealing the bead.

"Oh Mahal, Thorin no!" Balin whispered in horror, only Gandalf heard him.

"I believe we're in the company of the future Queen Under the Mountain." Gandalf muttered darkly.

"The fool! That was an irrational move, he should've waited. The girl doesn't even know what it means." Balin pinched the brow of his nose.

"I agree, our leader has made a very unwise move. I shall tell the others not to speak of the beads significance to her." Gandalf said.

His eyes darkened, it was obvious that this girl had Thorin wrapped around her finger.

Kyona had made her way over to the two Durin brothers who were smiling and laughing as they packed their ponies.

"Well hello Ky, you look rather nice today –"Fíli stopped mid sentence when he saw the bead.

"Forgive me." He muttered, taking extreme interest in the buckles.

He nudged his brother and gave him a look. Kili looked and saw the bead, his expression went dark. _'What is wrong with these guys today?' _She thought angrily.

"Well this is a surprise." Kili grinned mirth glittering his brown eyes as he regained his usual swagger.

"What is?" She asked, utterly clueless.

"Oh nothing, My Lady." Kili gave a slight bow, smirking.

'_Okay, something's off…' _Ky thought to herself.

"You'll find out in due time." Fíli said.

They had finished packing the ponies when Beorn and family came out to see them off.

"Well, for beggars you all weren't too bad!" Beorn laughed "But all the same, I must warn you that Mirkwood is a dark dangerous place. My advice, **do not, **stray from the path and don't bathe or drink from the black river which flows through the forest. It is said to be riddled with dark magic which possesses much forgetfulness and drowsiness." He warned.

A murmur rippled through the company. This would be a very dangerous stretch of the journey.

"We thank you greatly for your hospitality." Thorin gave a bow to the skin changer(s).

"It was no trouble at all." Bluebell smiled warmly.

Thorin nodded. Then to everyone's surprise a little blur gave Kyona a tackling hug. She gave an 'oof!' as she landed on the ground. Mahon was hugging her tightly.

"Please come again." He sniffled into her sternum.

She smiled softly "I'll try."

"Good, cause its boring around here without you."

The dwarves chuckled as Mahon let her go. Dwalin reached out and gave her a hand. She looked at his hand oddly before taking it and pulling up. She dusted her clothes off, the dwarves had started getting awkwardly onto their ponies. But Dwalin looked at her for a moment.

"You're an odd thing, but I guess he sees somethin' good in you." The tall dwarf said lowly before shrugging and clambering up onto his pony.

Kyona just stood there for a moment, wondering what on earth he could have meant by that statement. Bofur led a rather feisty pony over to her, she patted its nose but it squealed and reared its head.

Bofur chuckled.

"She's a feisty one!"

"Uh huh." Kyona murmured, swinging up on the horse with much more grace than the rest of the company.

-oOo-

Riding a pony wasn't much different than riding a warg Kyona decided. The biggest difference was that while the wargs wanted to go off and chase every single thing that moved, the pony wanted to eat anything with a greenish hue. Her stubborn horse kept wanting to eat, but that meant he would stop and Gloin's pony would walk into its behind, irritating both it and it owner multiple times.

"Can't ye control that pony Ky?" Gloin finally asked.

She turned in that saddle and shot one downright mean glare.

"If I could, I would Master Dwarf. But you see, this is more of an ass than a pony." She spat.

Laughter echoed through the company at her remark.

Eventually Kyona had gotten her pony (which she had started calling 'Nag') under control. The day had moved very quickly and smoothly for the company who had made good progress. They made camp in a large meadow, where wild flowers blossomed in vast numbers. It was a beautiful place, Kyona enjoyed it. But she couldn't help but feel the looming dread that Mirkwood was ahead. She knew in her heart that Azog would be in the forest, waiting to strike.

_'And it's my fault.' _She thought sadly.

-oOo-

That night, while the dwarves were sleeping, she got up and went on a short walk. The peaceful night air was calming on her nerves. The stars were glittering above her in the millions. She sighed and turned around, seeing that the campfire was barely in sight she sighed. _'Thorin wouldn't like it if I was out here alone.' _ She thought to herself.

And as if by magic,

"You shouldn't be out here alone; you never know what could be out there." Thorin's deep voice came from behind her.

"Why do we always meet when we're supposed be asleep?" She muttered.

"Fate, I assume." She turned and looked at the dwarf king who stood behind her smiling softly.

He wasn't in his normal fur coat and steel cuirass; he was simply in a tunic and trousers. Kyona concluded that he seemed more relaxed that way.

"Where is your armor?" She asked.

He smirked,

"Can I not sleep peacefully?"

"You aren't sleeping, you're out, alone." She noted.

"But I'm not alone anymore am I?" He said as he came close to her.

Kyona hadn't been this close to him before. He smelt of metal, pine, and a scent that was truly his own. It was intoxicating, oddly enough. An odd instinct inside her told her to move closer, but her conscious mind made her stay put. She had about an inch on his height but it seemed to make no difference. It wasn't long before they realized their noses were touching. Thorin realized it first and cleared his throat before pulling away, she followed in suit.

"Forgive me; I should not have pushed for this." He murmured before turning away and walking back toward the camp.

Kyona watched him strode back towards the camp, utterly confused. _'What was there to be sorry for?' _She wondered. But soon she shrugged and made her way back.

-oOo-

_'I am such a fool!' _Thorin thought to himself as he quietly went back to his bedroll. He knew the other dwarves had seen the bead. They had been casting him glances all day. He could barely contain the rage that was coursing through his body. He had claimed this naïve _girl _who seemingly had no clue about love – or dwarvish tradition for that matter. But he had claimed this woman to be his wife, _his queen. _Doubts were running through his mind. '_She is a human_, _we do not know her heritage, and Gandalf doesn't trust her!' _All these things were holding him back, would forever hold him back.

-oOo-

The next day Thorin did his best to ignore Kyona, who was casting him confused glances. He was saddling his pony away from the main mass of camp when he was approached by Dwalin.

"You know she has no clue right?" He said, crossing his arms.

"I am aware."

"And when she finds out who knows if she'll even return the favor." Dwalin said.

"Dwalin, I know what I have done. You do not need to tell me of my place." Thorin spat.

Dwalin raised his hands in defeat.

"The wizard has made sure that you're the one to tell her. Our lips are sealed." With that Dwalin walked back towards the camp.

Thorin's jaw clenched. '_Of course Gandalf told them not to say anything. Fíli and Kíli wouldn't have been able to contain themselves without a stern warning.' _Thorin thought darkly to himself.

-oOo-

The next few days went along the same lines. Eventually Kyona even got to like Nag a little more. The best times were spent around the campfires where Bofur told extravagant tales of gold, jewels and long dead dwarven heroes. Kyona enjoyed these times; they made her forget the looming darkness ahead. But at the same time, part of her hated it, it made her closer to all of these dwarves, too attached.

The day was overcast when they reached the edge of the forest. The dwarves were all solemn and quiet. What _really _improved their mood was Gandalf's departure. He claimed that he had pressing matters to attend to, whatever that meant! All in all Kyona was glad to not have his piercing blue gaze scrutinizing her every move. '_All the easier to betray them now…' _A cold voice said in her head. She shook her head, _not yet; _she couldn't betray them… _yet_ at least. 

Kyona looked into the twisted darkness of the forest; shifting at the new weight of the pack she had been given. This was a dark place, full of evilly unmentionable creatures. She took a shuddering breath trying to calm her nerves.

"It will be alright." Thorin said from behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

She gave him a small smile before looking back into the darkness. She couldn't help but feel like something, _someone, _was watching from out of those dark depths. She could have sworn she saw a shift of movement in the darkness, but she couldn't be sure. Not in the darkness.

-oOo-

**"Master, the dwarvish scum and Lady Raven have reached the forest. What shall we do?"**An underling orc muttered.

Azog's pale for was barely noticeable in the dark shadows.

**"We wait. Raven will know when to make contact. We cannot afford to attack them immediately; they're too strong for us yet. We will wait them out; the forest will weaken them before long." **Azog smirked in the faint light.


	12. Watching from the Shadows

**Chapter Twelve**

**Watching from the Shadows**

* * *

It was infuriating for Azog, watching the dwarves treat Raven as one of their own. It made his blood run cold with fury. He wanted to attack their camp right then and there, but he couldn't, not yet. The elvish threat hung over the orcs. They had to be stealthy, not giving away their immediate presence in the forest. Attacking the dwarves would bring about to much unwanted attention from the elves.

She seemed calm with them, just relaxing and watching them take a break. She was sitting on a large tree root with her feet propped up on a rock. It made him rather angry that she was so at ease with those, _creatures. _He tensed when one of the younger dwarves came up to her.

"Ky, Uncle wants to speak with you." He heard the young blonde dwarf say.

She rolled her eyes and stood up slowly stretching lazily before walking through the band of dwarves. She came to – _no! – _Thorin Oakenshield's side.

"You wanted to see me?"

"Kyona, I fear we're being watched." Azog barely heard his enemy say in a worried low tone.

"And I want – "

"– me to be careful and not wander away, yes, yes, I know. No need to warn me." She finished his sentence in a rather nonchalant tone.

"We don't know what could be out there." He said, marching off towards the other dwarves.

She nodded before rubbing her lower sternum, giving a slight grimace of pain.

"You know you should talk to Óin about your wound. I know it's giving you trouble." A little man – the one who had saved Oakenshield's life – said to her. Azog had barely seen the little man before he had spoken.

"Don't worry Bilbo, I'm tough." She gave a small smile.

The little man still looked doubtful. As he walked away a very worried expression came upon her face. While rubbing her wound she looked around 'casually'. Her grey eyes searching the dark forest around the path, they landed on him in the dark shadow where he was hiding. She didn't know it but they locked eyes. She gulped before kneeing down and fiddling with her boot. He squinted. _She was writing something in the dirt. _

After the dwarves had moved out of sight, Azog carefully slipped out onto the now deserted path. He craned his neck to read whatever she had written gently in the dirt. Before long he had found the rune for _'watching' _she had added a question mark for emphasis.

The look that had been in her eyes made him uneasy, it was like she didn't want him watching them. A pit of fear welled in his gut, he wasn't sure she was still a hundred percent loyal to them. This thought made him quite anxious. He would be keeping a close eye on her, on them.

-oOo-

The dark days turned into weeks and Raven had made no contact other than the rune written hastily in the dirt. This concerned him; normally she wouldn't have hesitated to make contact with him. Actually a lot of things about her concerned him. Her wound that she kept rubbing seemed to be getting worse. Then her amount of comfort around the dwarves was sickening, they would touch her! She let them touch her arm or her back! Azog couldn't believe it, she trusted the dwarves enough to let them touch her.

But that wasn't the worst thing; the worst was Oakenshield's special attention towards her. He was always checking on her, talking to her, and – he could barely stand it – physically touching her. It was the small barely noticeable touches that made him most angry, like the dwarf would walk past her and touch her arm softly, as if checking to see if she was still there. Azog's rage had hit a very violent point, if he couldn't attack the dwarves soon he was going to end up killing his own warriors.

Raven didn't seem to mind his attention, matter of fact, she seemed to enjoy it. She would smile at him sometimes, not like her smile he had ever seen her use before, a real smile. It was so foreign to him he almost wondered if this was the same girl who had infiltrated the dwarves months ago.

-oOo-

After a while Azog began to tell that they were starting to run out of food and water. The normally very plump dwarves began to become noticeably thinner. Raven's cheek bones became more pronounced and her now dirty grey vest was baggier on her already slim form. Raven had started acting more fidgety and anxious, like she was expecting something bad to happen.

Eventually something did. They had come to the black river with no way to cross. The little man had spotted a boat across the way. A young dwarf with not much of a beard threw a rope, and with the strength of most of the company they got the small boat across the river. In pairs of two they crossed the black torrent. At the end was a very large dwarf with a ginger beard, and Raven.

Raven got in the boat first. Her lips were drawn in a thin line and her face was pale with fright. She clung the boats edges with all her might, her knuckles white. Just as the large dwarf was clambering into the small boat a large stag jumped into the clearing. The dwarves shouted and pulled their bows out and began to pathetically shoot at the deer. Thorin was shouting at them to stop but they were so driven by hunger they didn't hear him.

But then there was a sight the pale orc never wanted to see again. Raven was kneeling on the upturned boat, holding onto the meaty hand of the large ginger dwarf. The dwarf was up to his waist in the black water. She was straining trying to hold onto the dwarf's hand.

**_'Let him go!'_**Azog growled in his head. She was being a fool; she should save herself the trouble and let the dwarf scum go!

But she didn't. She held onto him and wouldn't let go.

"Bombur has fallen in!" The little man wailed.

"Hold on Kyona!" Thorin yelled, grabbing a rope and throwing it them.

The rope hit the upturned boat and the ginger dwarf grabbed the rope, his other hand still holding onto Raven's. They dwarves started to heave the rope from the opposite bank. They soon made it to the other side; they drug the large dwarf up onto the bank. Raven was still perched on top of the boat, pale and trembling.

"Kyona, take my arm." Thorin Oakenshield had started to slide down the slippery bank towards Raven.

She started to shift towards the bank; he reached her and held his hand out, she carefully reached her own small hand towards his. Their hands met and he started to gently guild her forward onto the slippery bank. She carefully planted her left foot on the bank, her right soon followed. But as her right foot came onto the bank a piece of earth gave way, making her ankle rolling in a nauseating direction. She let out a small cry of pain. Thorin presently picked her up and carried her back up onto dry flat ground.

He set her down with gingerly care. As he waved another older dwarf over to them he scooted to her side, putting and arm around her. That was almost the snapping point for Azog; he was touching her in a most unsuitable way. She was reclining against him as the older grey dwarf took her boot off to look at her ankle.

"Oh lass, that's not good." The old dwarf poked her ankle, she hissed in pain.

"What are we going to do?" A dwarf with odd hair said _(Nori)._

"Aye, have ye seen Bombur? The lad's knocked out!" A dwarf with a hat said as he poked the large, unconscious, ginger dwarf with his boot.

They tried to wake the large dwarf up but he wouldn't come round, his meaty hand was clenched so tightly around the rope they could not pry it from his grasp. Meanwhile the old dwarf was preparing to set Raven's ankle.

"This might hurt a bit lass." The old dwarf said, looking warily at Thorin who gave a curt nod.

"I'm not afraid of pain." She replied softly.

"I know you aren't." The old dwarf smiled.

He fiddled with the splint a bit before suddenly and unexpectedly putting it on her. She gave a short yelp.

"You could have warned me!" She glared.

"The suspense wouldn't have done ya any good."

She crossed her arms as he wrapped bandages around the splint.

"There, give it a few weeks and ye'll be good as new!" The old dwarf patted her newly taken care of ankle.

She attempted to stand but her ankle didn't support her and she collapsed onto Oakenshield. He stood up carefully and helped her stand; she clung to his arm for support as she stumbled along. Just then the sound of elvish hunting horns blew and the braying of hounds filled the air. Azog realized that his troops may be in danger; he had to return to them as quickly as possible. He cast one last quick glance towards Raven before slipping away into further shadows.

-oOo-

_"Well this is just fantastic." _Kyona thought glumly to herself as she was helped along like an old lady by Thorin.

"Will you be alright?" he asked softly.

"I should be. If I were you I'd be more concerned with Bombur." She nodded her head in the large dwarf's direction. Thorin gave a small groan of annoyance.

"Let me go sort this out." He said while lowering Kyona onto the ground.

Before long the dwarves had fashioned a stretcher which the loaded Bombur onto. They had also decided to carry Kyona for a ways; (much to her distaste) her ankle was still too injured to risk her walking. She huffed as she was picked up by Thorin. _'I truly hope that we aren't being observed by orcs, Azog will have a fit.' _Kyona grumbled inside her head.

-oOo-

They continued to travel through the dark dank wood for a few more days, until Bombur woke up. He sat up and started talking about a lovely feast he had been attending. They also came to realize he had lost all memory of the journey. So his brother, Bofur, took the liberty of explaining their entire journey to him. It was quite interesting to hear what they had been doing before the mountains. They had fought trolls, wargs, and stayed with elves. She was glad to know of their entire adventure.

-oOo-

Food was running low; everyone was on their wits end. It didn't help that Bombur wouldn't shut up about his dream feast.

Kyona's ankle was feeling the slightest bit better; she could walk with the help of the crutch that Bofur had fashioned. It had mostly been her and Bilbo at the end of the group. She had actually come to enjoy the little hobbits company. He would tell her of the beauty of the Shire and the peaceful lives of the hobbits. She found that it was his little stories of home that kept her sane and gave her the strength to hobble forward on the crutch.

But the small happiness ended when she found the runes. They were the orcish runes for '_meeting' _and _'night' _carved on a tree. Azog was getting impatient. She gulped as she settled into her bedroll. She became nervous when the eyes that normally flashed around the campsite at night were gone. Kyona knew then that the orcs were watching her, wanting to know if she had gotten the message.

She casually sat up and stretched her ankle. Then Kyona took her knife out and started to rub her thumb over the runes that indicated her status as an orcish general. Azog had carved them onto the hilt with his hook. Any orc watching would see the movement and tell Azog, if it wasn't Azog himself watching. She gulped before lying down. She would need her rest if she was to rise before the others.

-oOo-

A creeping dread woke Kyona in the middle of the night, well, she couldn't really tell what time of day it was, but all the dwarves were still deeply asleep, even Bilbo who had been on watch. She got up as quietly as she could and picked her way through the sleeping dwarves. They were all asleep. She made her way to the edge of the forest where she turned and took a last look at the sleeping company and the dying fire.

She should have known an orc would be waiting for her not far into the forest. It nodded to her from atop its warg before a very familiar light warg came out of the shadows and nuzzled her gently. She scratched Cainis's ear softly before gingerly swinging up on her, trying to be wary of her ankle.

Instead of running, the wargs walked quietly through the forest. She realized that wargs would not have been necessary but her ankle had said otherwise. They soon came to a rare clearing within the forest. Kyona swallowed hard when she saw how many orcs and wargs had assembled here. The dwarves would have no chance if they attacked.

The orc who had met her took the injured girl to a rather narrow twisted path that was on the other side of the clearing. He was back there she knew, away from all the other orcs. Kyona took a deep breath before sliding off Cainis. She showed no sign of pain (even though it hurt like nobody's business). The girl squared her shoulders before walking to the path.

It was twisting and turning and was quite treacherous. She had been picking her way along when she heard something behind her, she looked but nothing was there, she shrugged it off. Eventually she came to a much smaller clearing; a large, dark, twisted tree was in the center of it, and shafts of moonlight came through the thick canopy of twisted trees. At its base lay the white warg, whose nose was now quite burned. Kyona would have smirked if it had not lifted its lip to reveal its six inch fangs. It had never growled at her before.

**"Be quiet Azazal."** Azog hissed from the shadow of the tree. The warg went quiet.

Kyona came to stop a yard away from the tree. She stood there, waiting for him to speak.

**"I see they have come to trust you. You saving that fat dwarf's life helped that matter no doubt."** Azog spat.

"Forgive me." She said quickly, wincing at his words. 

**"You're no longer in there company, no need to use common speech."** He said, coming out of the shadows.

**"What do you want to know?"**She said robotically, not looking him in the eye.

**"Why do you seem so comfortable around those, _creatures,_" **Azog asked, running his hand over her long dark brown hair before bringing his pale hand under her chin forcing her to look him in the eye.

**"Oakenshield in particular."** He added.

**"I have had no choice but to act normal around them. If I acted strange they would suspect me."**

**"But that's the thing, you _aren't _acting normal."** He said, his hand going to touch her throat gently.

That was a warning Raven knew well, she had better explain herself quickly.

**"What is wrong with me being peaceful in their presence, you're going to kill them anyway!"**She couldn't help but let the smallest bit of pain leak into her tone.

A small realization dawned in Azog's eyes.

**"You care for them."** He said in such a cold tone that Kyona felt a small prick of tears behind her tightly shut eyelids.

**"No – no! I don't they're just –"**

**"Don't make excuses."**Azog spat, picking her up with frightening ease by the front of her vest with his hook.

Her feet hovered a good two feet off the ground. Fury burned in Azog's eyes; Kyona felt her chances of survival dwindling into single digits now. She felt her back collide with the black tree; she gulped and grabbed his arm with her hands. His hand came to her throat, slowly cutting off her air supply.

**"P-please!"** She gasped out.

Suddenly the fury in his eyes melted away and the pressure on her neck was gone and she was on her knees. She massaged her throat and looked up to Azog who had his eyes closed.

**"Raven, I never thought it would be you who betrayed me."** He said.

**"But I haven't betrayed you!"** She said desperately.

**"You care too much for those dwarves!"** His eyes flashed with anger for a moment.

A wave of despair went through the girl like a shiver. She felt tears coming on, _'No! You can't be weak!' _ She mentally yelled at herself.

She put her head in her hands and tried to stop the sobs of fear. Then she felt a hand grab her arm and pulled her on her feet, she favored her left foot. She looked up at the pale orc, his eyes were glittering in the faint moonlight. There was an emotion in their depths that she had never seen before, one she couldn't decipher. His hand was resting on her shoulder and his hook lay still at his side.

**"I fear you, Raven, you have made me weak. I should have killed you all those years ago, because I cannot kill you now."** He said, leaning down and touching foreheads with her. It was a (the only) sign of compassion that orcs would show one another.

** "You really think I would betray you? After all you have done for me. You raised me, you trained me, I have no one else."** She said, touching his cheek with her small hand.

Hewas silent for a moment, then, he straightened up and using his hook he brushed a stray hair off of her forehead.

**"It has been difficult watching you with them."**

**"You yourself have been watching?" **Kyona's eyes widened.

**"Oakenshield cares for you," **Azog's eyes narrowed and his head cocked to the side.

**"Of course, he trusts me, they all do. I am a part of their company."** She broke eye contact and looked to her feet.

**"He looks after you more than his companions."**

**"Why haven't you attacked them yet? You have more than enough fighters."** She asked, changing subject.

**"The elvish scum are too near, and too many. If we attacked it would be our undoing, even though the dwarves are plenty weak."** He replied, his eyes still narrow and calculating.

_'Ahh, I see now.' _She thought with relief. _Wait, _relief?

**"Sensible, will you wait till they have traveled out of Mirkwood?" **

**"You make it sound as if you won't be with them?"** He questioned.

**"I won't… will I?" **

**"It was my intention that you would signal us when you had left Mirkwood,"** He said handing her a small whistle, **"You know this whistle well. Blow it when you have left the safety of the forest." **

She couldn't help a small smirk forming on her face, a warg whistle. Too high pitched for human, dwarf, or orc ears to hear, but to a warg it was a shill calling whistle, a perfect way to summon the orcs.

**"Forgive me for misjudging you; I know you will do everything within your power to betray them."** He said.

She gave a nod,

"I won't let you down." She said in common, but then the full realization set in. She had just betrayed the dwarves. But then a fierce side of her pushed the remorse away. Azog was counting on her.

-oOo-

Azog ran his fingers through her hair one last time, but then his finger hit something small and hard fastened on a very small braid on the left side of her neck. He pulled it forward and looked at this small silver bead in her hair. It seemed to be smirking at him in the faint moonlight.

_'No, no, NO, this couldn't be!' _Rage bubbled up inside him, he examined the bead closer and saw the mark her had tried to cleanse the world of… the mark of Durin.

**"Is something wrong?"** Raven asked, she sounded innocently concerned.

**"Raven, why is this bead in your hair?" **He asked.

Her face drained of color.

**"I-I don't know, I thought it was pretty so I left it in!" **

She was so naïve in this matter, it almost made him laugh.

**"Raven, do you know the significance of this bead?" **He asked, the rage was building, not at Raven, the child didn't know.

Raven's face was chalk white now.

**"N-no." **

**"The dwarf who put this in your hair has claimed you –" **he stopped, preparing himself for the next words, **"—claimed you as his wife."**

Raven stumbled and caught her balance on the trunk of the tree.

**"Who put this in your hair?"** He hissed in fury.

The horror in her normally fierce gray eyes as she locked eyes with him confirmed his suspicion. He would make Oakenshield pay for this, that dwarf scum would regret evertouching _his _Raven.

He turned away from the now trembling girl.

**"I-I'm so sorry! If I had known I would have taken it out!"** She stammered trying to calm him.

**"It wasn't your fault, you didn't know. He will pay for this."** Azog growled.

**"I'll take it out!"** She said reaching for her knife.

**"No, don't. It is the most offensive things you can do to a dwarf. It will raise suspicion." **Azog said, turning back towards her, and then he took her knife from the scabbard at her waist.

**"Give me your arm."**

-oOo-

Raven bit her tongue and put out her left arm. Azog pushed up the sleeve. The metal was cold and sharp against the sensitive skin if her forearm. She knew what he was going to do, though, he normally used his hook.

It hurt to say the least, having letters carved into your arm wasn't a pleasant experience. She opened her eyes when she felt the blade leave her arm. Then he held out a long cloth for her, she took it and wiped the access blood off her arm. It was awful seeing '_Azog' _carved into her forearm. He normally did this with rival orcs or enemies after he had killed them. She knew this was his way of saying that she was his, and Thorin had no claim on her.

She wrapped the cloth around her arm, making it tight. Then the grey eyed girl pulled her sleeve over the wound. The dwarves couldn't find out about this.

**"You must leave now. Say nothing to anyone, also hide that bead."**He warned, handing her knife back.

**"I will."** She nodded, putting the knife back in its scabbard, then she turned away and went down the dark twisted path from whence she came.

-oOo-

Bilbo was having issues staying awake during his watch shift. Honestly, he wanted something to happen, nothing dangerous of course! _'But nothing exciting can happen without it being dangerous.' _Bilbo thought glumly as he struggled to keep his eyelids open.

A shuffle came to his sharp little hobbit ears. He looked from under his lashes and saw Kyona getting up in a rather suspicious manner. He said nothing, watching to see what she would do. Bilbo's suspicions were peaked when she looked behind her and then slipped into the dark forest. Quickly the hobbit slipped the Ring on and started after her, his Tookish side taking over his sensible Baggins side.

He followed her into the forest. It wasn't long before he saw an orc on a warg. Bilbo was about to pull out his sword when the orc nodded to her… and she nodded back. Bilbo didn't know what to do, whether to scream and go tell Thorin, or wait and follow her and see why on earth that orc hadn't just killed her.

Oh, but it got worse, _much _worse.

Within moments a small tan warg came out of the trees and nuzzled her like a dog does its master. The poor hobbit almost fainted when she got up on the warg like she had done it a million times.

But it wasn't over yet. He followed the wargs through the forest, not making a sound, until they came to a large clearing with a great many wargs and orcs. Bilbo almost backed out… but then, he would never know why she was here. So, he went around the clearing and quietly snuck past a large orc and down the path Kyona had just gone. He picked his way over the roots.

He started to pick up the pace; he rounded a particularly sharp curve in the path and almost ran smack into Kyona. His eyes were wide when she snapped her head around and searched the path. She must not have seen anything out of the ordinary; she shrugged and continued on her way. It was obvious that her ankle was giving her trouble. She was walking very carefully, and she had forgotten her crutch.

All too soon they came out into a smaller clearing. The first thing that made Bilbo almost faint was the white warg, looking quite unhappy (its nose was burned). Then, the warg looked straight at him and growled, revealing very long fangs. The hobbit heard a hiss in orcish; Kyona came to a stop a little ways away from a rather grotesque black tree.

Then a deep terrifying orcish voice spoke words that Bilbo did not understand.

"Forgive me." He heard Kyona say quickly, her posture winced.

Then to Bilbo's utter horror the pale orc stepped out of the shadow of the blackened tree. He spoke to her again in orcish, this time she replied in expert orcish. Bilbo's head snapped up, _'That's why she speaks so odd!' _he realized.

They started to dialog in the dark language, but that's not what made Bilbo almost ill, it was the way he was gently running his hand over her hair and along her cheek and her chin. It was _way _too intimate, but after a moment Bilbo realized that it was not done with a sexual motive but more in the way that a father is with his child. Bilbo wasn't sure whether to be relieved or more disgusted.

But then their conversation got violent rather quickly. He picked her up by the front of her vest with his hook and slammed her against the tree. He started to choke her but the she sputtered something out and he dropped her, she crumpled to the ground massaging her neck. She looked like she was about to start sobbing. The pale orc's body language had relaxed, almost deflated. Then he picked her up by her arm and touched foreheads with her.

_'He has some pretty violent mood swings.' _Bilbo thought as he watched in odd fascination.

Then she pulled away from the bizarre affection and once again began to dialog in orcish. She sounded nervous, like she was trying to convince him of something. She started to talk in a different more businesslike manner, during this time he handed her something small, it made her smirk. He said something in orcish then she said in common.

"I won't let you down." Those words made Bilbo shiver in fear.

It seemed that he was say goodbye until he said something in a very angry tone; he was fingering the bead that Thorin had put in her hair. Bilbo had discovered, with some questioning, that the bead was like an engagement ring.

_'Oh no…' _Bilbo thought in horror.

But surprisingly Azog didn't hurt her…right away. It took him a moment but then he told her something in orcish while grabbing her knife. She timidly extended her left arm. He roughly pushed the sleeve up and started to scrape her arm. The blood started to run in little streams down her arm and drip onto the forest floor below. Then the pale orc pulled out a long rough piece of cloth and handed it to her. She wrapped tightly around her arm stopping the blood flow.

The said a little bit more in orcish, and he handed her back the hunting knife she always carried with her. She nodded and turned away, heading towards him. He shuffled away from the entrance so that she wouldn't walk into him.

-oOo-

Kyona slid off of Cainis, the warg gave her one more affectionate nudge before running back off into the trees. The dwarves' fire could be seen as a little dot in the dark forest. She stood there for a moment, in slight shock of what just happened. She backed up to the nearest tree and let her back slide down it. She knew that no orcs were nearby, but why did she have the prickle that someone was watching her?

"You're going to need your arm looked at." Bilbo's small voice said from the shadows, where he materialized in front of her.

An icy hand clenched her heart.

_He had seen._


	13. Unwanted Truth and a Change in Loyalty

**Chapter Thirteen**

**Unwanted Truth and a Change in Loyalty**

* * *

Kyona stood there, gaping like a fish.

"You had better explain yourself!" Bilbo said in the sternest voice he could muster, even though he was white as a sheet and starting to tremble.

"How much of that did you see?" Kyona asked, her eyes wide.

"All of it."

"Then I have no need to explain, you witnessed it all."

Bilbo gave her a deadpanned look,

"I don't speak orcish."

"Oh… But you saw the exchange." She said.

"That's what you need to explain!" Bilbo said frantically, moving his hands about.

Kyona stood there, not sure what to say.

"Kyona, are you giving them information about the quest?" Bilbo asked, his eyes widening in the sudden realization.

"Yes, I have been ever since I joined the company." Kyona said with a hint of remorse.

Pure horror crossed Bilbo's face as he started to back away.

_'He's going to run…' _Kyona realized.

Then he turned and bolted towards the camp. Kyona was after him in an instant, and she could runfaster than him, even with her ankle causing her most dreadful pain. Bilbo didn't even have time to react before she slammed him against a tree, her knife at his throat. Bilbo made a pathetic noise in the back of his throat.

"I-I won't let you do this Ky!" He said, trying to sound firm.

The knife started to dig into his skin,

"Keep it down or you're dead! There are many things in these woods I could blame your death on." Kyona hissed.

Bilbo's eyes were as wide as saucers, fear shown clearly in them.

Something washed over Kyona; she loosened her grip on him.

"Bilbo I don't want to kill you, I really don't." Kyona closed her eyes.

"I don't want you to kill me either." Bilbo said, swallowing hard.

"But if you say anything I will not hesitate to end your life." She hissed, again pressing the knife to his neck.

Then she released him and he fell unceremoniously to the ground.

"I won't say a thing…" Bilbo squeaked, rubbing his neck.

"Good, because you wouldn't live very long if you did." She turned to head back towards the camp.

"Kyona, will at least tell me why you're doing this?" Bilbo called out softly.

She stopped, why _was _she doing this?

"I have no choice, I was asked to and I must fulfill my duty."

"Why are you loyal to _them _t-to him?!" he asked.

"I have no one else." She said, gazing at the glowing dot which was the dwarves' fire.

"You have the company, you have little Mahon, and you have Thorin!" Bilbo tried to reason.

"Remember Bilbo, one word and you're dead." She said, ignoring him as she walked towards the camp.

-oOo-

The dwarves' were all still asleep, surprisingly. Kyona went to her bedroll and lay down. Her adrenaline and heart were pumping too much for her to even consider trying to sleep. She heard Bilbo go and wake Balin for the change in watch shifts; he had been late, giving the old white bearded dwarf some extra shuteye. She heard the hobbit lay down on his bedroll, and could practically hear his mental battle raging on inside his little hobbit noggin.

Her secret was out, to some extent. Thank goodness none of the dwarves had been in Bilbo's place. Their sense of kinsmen loyalty would have gone beyond any threat she could offer. She lay there till she heard Thorin start to move on his bedroll a little ways away.

She watched him through her lashes as he got up – as he did every morning – and walked around the edge of the campsite, checking for danger. She made her breathing deep and consistent as he came her way. He was nudging dwarves along the way, waking them from their sleep. His expression seemed exceptionally grave today.

Then Kyona realized something. He had put an engagement bead in her hair, without telling her! _'Cheeky git…way to go you're just brilliant in putting in a bead that claims me as yours.' _She thought grumpily to herself. _'But then again, Azog did just carve his name into my arm…' _that thought made the pain in her arm come to the center of her mind; she rubbed her forearm trying to ease the itchy dull pain.

Thorin came to her side 'woke her up'. She made a slight show of stretching and yawning, she almost grimaced when pain went through her sternum and arm, and then her ankle started to throb.

"It is time to wake, we must move as fast as we can through this blasted forest." He said.

Before long all the dwarves had awoken and were packing up their bedrolls and other various items. Kyona took this precious time to weave the warg whistle up into her thick brown hair.

"I believe the day has come, we have no food or water." Bofur said solemnly, turning his water skin upside down for emphasis.

Cries went through the company.

"What'll we do?!" Bombur collapsed on the ground.

"We must press through!" Thorin said, trying to encourage his troop.

But they didn't hear him, for the smell of cooked meat and fair voices came through the wood. Thorin didn't even have time to call after them before they ran wildly off into the woods. Thorin growled in anger before setting of after them. Kyona looked around and saw that it was only her and Bilbo left in their old campsite, and he was looking at her in fear.

"Follow me and do not wander from my side!" Thorin called to them as her drew his sword.

They ran after him, branches snapping back in their faces. They ran into a clearing where there seemed to be an elvish feast taking place. But Kyona didn't get time to study it before everything went dark and she and Thorin slipped from consciousness.

-oOo-

When Kyona woke, her hands were tied together with a soft rope. She looked around and saw she was on her knees beside Thorin – who was forced to the ground by a stern looking elf – the dwarf was radiating fury. Kyona wasn't sure if she had ever seen him so angry. His jaw was clenched and he strained in vain at the bonds behind his back.

They started to get pushed along by a squad of elvish warriors till the twisting stone passageway they had been following opened up into a grand hall. In front of them was a large stone throne which was carved to look like a tree growing up the high wall of the cave.

On the thrown sat the snootiest most stuck up looking elf Kyona had ever seen. He slouched with such a lazy manner it made Kyona's blood boil. But yet, his cold blue gaze frightened her. Within those ice cold depths was ageless wisdom that seemed to stare into your very being. She gulped. He was one to be wary of.

"Thorin, son of Thraín son of Thrór. Rightful king under the Lonely Mountain." The elvish king said in a rather mock tone.

_'What is it with everyone mocking his name!?' _Kyona thought to herself.

"Thranduil." Thorin spat.

"May I ask why you and your, company, attacked my people on this day?" Thranduil asked, standing gracefully up from his throne.

"We never attacked you! We were starving and in need of aid!" Thorin yelled.

"Bring me their weapons, Tauriel." The Elven king said.

A very beautiful red haired elvish woman came striding in carrying Orcrist and Kyona's knife. Thranduil picked up Thorin's sword and examined its fine craftsmanship.

"Orcrist, forged by the high elves of the First Age. I see you dwarves have taken up thieving as well." Thranduil ridiculed, flicking his icy eyes to the furious dwarf lord.

At that Thorin yelled a dwarvish curse and fought his restraints.

"How dare you accuse my people of thievery you elvish filth!" Thorin spat.

"Temper, temper! I had forgotten you and your people's horribly short tempers. " The elf shook his head with mockery.

Thorin snarled.

Thranduil then moved on to her knife.

"Well this is an odd occurrence, I had no idea you ran into orcs as well! But the orcs we ran into today did not use such puny weapons." Thranduil said.

"Orcs? We have not run into any orcs." Thorin said in a confused tone.

"Hmm, well then how did you come by an orcish general's knife? You see, Thorin son of Thraín, I have been in this world long enough to read many dialects. One of which, is orcish runes. This knife belongs to an orcish general if I am not correct." Thranduil explained in a bored tone, rubbing his slender finger over the crude rune on the hilt.

Kyona's heart stopped. The look Thorin gave her was of pure confusion.

"Oh, unless, you never took it from an orc." A look of guile crossed Thranduil's fair features. He then he said something in elvish to the red haired elf.

Then he focused gaze on Kyona.

"You know, I have heard the rumors of a girl, a girl who is a queen – or should I say princess – among orcs." A smirk had formed at the sight of Thorin's now pale face. Thranduil came off of his throne platform and was circling the two fugitives.

"But what am I saying!" He said. "I have no way to confirm these ridiculous rumors… without an orc." His face had adopted an evil look as Tauriel came in with another handsome blonde elf, pushing an orc.

"This is one of the orcs we captured from the forest earlier." The Elven king announced.

Kyona was almost shaking and she had no blood left in her face, Thorin was in almost the same condition beside her.

"Now tell me, _orc, _do you know this girl?" Thranduil pointed to Kyona.

The orc would not look up.

"Look up you filth!" Tauriel spat. Kyona tensed at the remark.

The orc hesitantly looked up and met Kyona's fierce grey gaze.

"Tell me, or you die in a most uncomfortable way." Thranduil threatened.

That did the trick.

**"Lady Raven."** It uttered quietly, Kyona's eyes closed.

**"Fool, they would have killed you anyway!"** Kyona snarled orcish.

Looks of surprise crossed the face of every person in that room.

"So the rumors are true." Thranduil whispered.

"Kyona, tell me this isn't true…" Thorin whispered in horror, tears threatened to well up in his eyes.

She said nothing.

"Ah, Kyona, I believe that name means raven?" Thranduil smirked, "So tell me, _Lady Raven,_ what do the orcs use you for, a whore or a fighter?"

Kyona shot him a murderous glare.

"I am a general, if you give me my knife I'll show you what I can do to your fair elvish face!" She said with hate.

"Oh, I quiver in fear." Thranduil retorted with mock fear.

"You should, my father will never let you get away with this." She said coldly.

"Your father hmm?" The elf said, "And who might that be?"

"The orc who raised me." She squared her shoulders.

Thranduil looked at her oddly, stopping his circling around them for a moment.

"You were raised by them? You don't seem to have the cowering mannerisms of any regular orc. I see you walk with a proud straight posture, one to intimidate. So that means you were most likely raised by an orcish leader that came from mount Gundabad, hmm? Only the true descendants of that place carry themselves in such a way. Tell me I'm wrong." He challenged.

"Spot on."

"There are not many orcs who hail straight from that mountain anymore, only a few I can name. One of which I saw a flash of in the forest today."

_'Please don't say it.' _ She thought inside her head, dreading Thorin's reaction.

"He was pale, and walked with a proud bearing, one which most orcs do not possess… one he could have taught you." Thranduil came to a stop in front of her.

She looked up and met his eye. She didn't say a thing, but the elf knew he was right.

"I can't imagine the Defiler raising you gently, I am surprised you can even speak intelligibly."

She scowled at the elf, feeling Thorin's fury in waves.

"I see you knew nothing of this Oakenshield?" He smirked.

Thorin didn't reply but kept glaring at the floor in front of him, trying to take deep breaths to control his rage.

"What shall we do with her, my lord?" Tauriel asked.

Thranduil looked between the two in front of him, he should kill her but it would be just as easy to put her, alone, with the dwarf in a cell. He could easily kill her.

Then the elven king saw the bead in her hair.

For some odd reason he felt a twinge of pity for this dwarf in front of him. He likely wouldn't kill his betrothed, but still, it would be much more entertaining if he did.

"Put them in a cell, together."

"Yes my lord."

"And don't chain them or put a guard outside, they must work out, their… _problems." _

Tauriel nodded then started to push the two fugitives out of the hall. And as they walked out of his hall Thranduil thought sadly,

_'What has made me so cold?'_

-oOo-

The metal cell door swung shut, leaving a fuming Thorin and a rather poignant Kyona. She knew it was coming before he even made the move. He turned and slammed her against the wall, his forearm pressing her neck.

"Why, why have you done this to me?" He said, his voice shaking with rage.

_'Okay, take that back, this is the angriest I have ever seen him.' _She thought to herself.

"I had no choice, I am sorry." She apologized.

Then she realized something while looking in the hurt steely blue eyes of the dwarf in front of her, she meant it. She truly felt remorse for what she had done.

"BE DAMNED YOU HAD NO CHOICE!" Thorin yelled. She had never heard him curse before, which surprised her. The other dwarves (*cough* Dwalin) cursed on a regular basis but Thorin had never even used a crass word.

"IF YOUR FATHER ASKED YOU TO DO SOMETHING YOU WOULD DO IT!" She yelled back.

"HE IS NOT YOUR FATHER!"

"HE MIGHT AS WELL BE!"

Thorin let her go and started pacing the room.

"You have been giving him information about us haven't you?" He hissed.

"Yes." She said.

"He knows our destination?" His eyes glinted with pure fury.

"Yes."

"When was the last time you met with him in the flesh?"

"This morning, about ten minutes before you woke me up." She said, looking down at the floor.

"How could you?!" He gasped in exasperation.

"I am truly sorry Thorin… it would have been different, if you had told me." tears pricked her eyes.

"Told you of what?" He asked as he spun around to face her, fire in his eyes.

She made no reply but she moved her hand to the bead in her hair.

Thorin's gaze softened.

"Who told you?"

She looked up and met his eyes, he already knew before the words came out of her mouth.

"I didn't now till this morning." She said.

"I am surprised he didn't cut it out." Thorin scoffed.

"Oh trust me, he wanted to, but he told me it was one of most offensive things you could do to a dwarf. His excuse was that it would arouse suspicion."

"I am sorry, I should have told you as I put it in." Thorin sat on the only cot in the cell, putting his hand on his forehead.

"That pathetic excuse for a king expects you to kill me." She said.

Thorin made no reply.

"But I don't think you will. And I want to know why. You see, I was raised in a place where if someone displeased you, then you kill them. Being with you dwarves has opened my eyes to something I cannot explain, something I don't understand." She said as she came closer to him.

She wasn't expecting him to stand up grab her by the shoulders and yell,

"BECAUSE I AM IN LOVE WITH YOU! AND I HAVE BEEN EVER SINCE I LAID EYES ON YOU!" He yelled.

She was shocked, so he loved her. That confession changed her. Never in her eighteen years of life had another being said those words to her, and she wasn't about to let it go. Her mind raced, she needed to do something, something to ease the feeling that her heart was melting, crushing the bugs that had been thriving in her stomach every time she was near Thorin. She had never felt it before but she could only believe that this was the love her mother had gruffly described to her as a child.

So, she did what that girl had done when the boy had given her a flower.

She leaned forward and kissed him on the lips.

-oOo-

Thorin was about to lose hope when the woman he loved leaned forward and kissed him. Her lips were surprisingly soft and plush against his. His mouth started to move more fiercely against her soft kiss. She started to get the hang of it and kiss back. Before he knew it they were kissing quite passionately. He ran his fingers over her hair and pulled her to him. They both pulled away at the same time.

"I think I love you too." She said softly, running her hand over his hair, smiling to him.

"He has been watching the company. I had no choice but to go to him." She said, looking down at her hands.

Thorin's expression darkened.

"Kyona, has he ever, _hurt you?" _She realized what he meant.

"He has never let anything have its way with me, including himself." She replied.

"But they have tried?" He asked.

"Yeah, a couple of times, but he always killed them. I am thought of as his daughter, I am his only – "She stopped.

"Only what?"

"Only weakness." She finished. "It would hurt him more if you killed me than if you cut of both his arms or destroyed his entire army."

Thorin's eyes widened.

"He doesn't have feelings; he kills for the fun of it." Thorin said viciously.

"Oh really? I have been around him for thirteen years and so far I have seen him produce a lot of emotion!" Kyona argued.

"Thirteen years?" Thorin said, his eyes widening.

"Yes, he destroyed my village when I was a child. I proved myself when I killed three orcs with my hunting knife."

"That knife you always carry?"

"Yes. It is quite famous at our stronghold; I have killed many with it." Kyona said, her eyes going out of focus for a moment.

"Have you named it?" he asked.

"Named what?"

"Your knife."

"You know, I have never thought about that before." She said.

She stared at the stone floor in concentration. Her mind went back to the day when she took the knife off her dead father's belt. It was cold and snowing, and later in the day after they had gotten back to the orc stronghold, Azog had told his second in command (whom she had killed later on in her life) that her little knife had quite the bite, like a warg fang.

"Frost Fang, or I can call just call it Fang." She said finally.

"I believe that is a fitting name." Thorin smiled.

After a moments silence he asked.

"Kyona, where will your loyalties lie?"

She thought for a moment, then made a decision that would change her fate.

"With you, the one I love." She said softly taking his hand.

Somewhere deep down in her heart she knew she had made the right choice.


	14. Barrels of Alarm

**Chapter Fourteen**

**Barrels of Alarm**

* * *

Three weeks had passed since she had told Thorin of her love. Those three weeks had been, oddly, the best of her life. She and Thorin had grown quite close. They often discussed their pasts, and their future. But as always, the worry that the rest of their company was still lost out in Mirkwood was front and center in their minds.

"One day you will rule beside me under the mountain." He had said one day while stroking her hair.

"If we ever get out of this cursed mountain." She mumbled.

"I think I can help you with that." Bilbo's voice whispered from outside the cell door.

"Bilbo!" A grin crossed Kyona's face as she sat up; Thorin gave a slight grin as well.

"W-where are you?" She asked in surprise.

Just then the hobbit materialized in front of them.

"How did you –"

"I will explain in a moment."

"Are the others alright?" She asked.

"Yes, they're here in the dungeons. They haven't said a word; Balin has made sure of that." The hobbit told them.

Then Bilbo went on to explain about his new magic ring which made him invisible. He told of the spiders he had saved the dwarves from. Kyona was amazed that their normally timid hobbit had saved almost the whole company.

_'People change, as I have found out myself.' _She thought as the burglar explained his plan of stuffing everyone in barrels and shipping them down the river.

Thorin didn't seem too pleased about the idea.

"If it gets us out of this place then I will go along with it." Thorin grumbled.

Kyona put a hand on his arm, calming him.

"I think Bilbo will be able to handle it." She reassured.

Bilbo was looking at her with an odd expression.

"You have changed." He noticed.

"Aye, for the better. You won't need to fear me any longer." She smiled.

"He knew?" Thorin said, a hint of hurt in his voice.

"Ah, yes he witnessed my meeting with him in the forest; he must have used that ring." She said awkwardly.

Thorin turned his stern gaze on the hobbit.

"Why didn't you say something?" He asked.

"She –"

"I threatened to kill him if he said anything!" She said, saving the hobbit the trouble of explaining.

"He still should have said something." Thorin huffed.

"I think if you she had you pinned to a tree with a knife at your throat you would keep quiet!" Bilbo said, a tremor in his voice.

Thorin gave them both a slight glare.

"Alright. Tell the others of your plan."

"Tomorrow, it will happen tomorrow." Bilbo nodded, preparing to slip the Ring on.

"Bilbo, do you mind finding my knife for me?" Kyona called out.

The hobbit smiled,

"I will if I can." Then he disappeared into mid air.

-oOo-

Kyona woke suddenly, she didn't know what time of day it was, only that Thorin was lying beside her. The cell they were kept in was meant for a single person, not two. Kyona had refused to let him sleep on the ground and he had refused to let her sleep on the ground. So they had to share the cot. She had surprisingly not minded it; he kept her warm in the cold dank dungeon.

The prison food was wonderful after the many weeks of meager meals in the forest; they had soon regained the weight they had lost in Mirkwood. Thorin was always fussing over her, he often reminded her of a mother hen. She hadn't told him of the name on her arm, it made her nervous every time he would touch her arm. It had soon become a habit when she was nervous to start rubbing the since healed wound. Her ankle and sternum had soon become healed as well. She finally felt back to normal.

She sat up and stretched, trying not to wake the slumbering dwarf beside her. She stood and walked to the cell door, looking for any signs of the hobbit.

"He will come. Don't worry yourself over it." Thorin's deep voice said from across the cell.

"I will be glad when we're out of this blasted place!" She growled.

"We will be soon enough." Apparently he had gotten out of the cot and was standing behind her, she felt his arms wrap around her torso.

"I wish I had my knife." She said after a moment.

"Good thing Thranduil wasn't guarding it." Bilbo appeared in front of the door holding a large ring of keys and Fang.

Thorin released Kyona's waist.

"Are the others free?" Thorin asked, trying to regain his composure as Bilbo unlocked their door.

"Aye, you two were the last." Bofur said from the hall way.

They stepped out and grinned with relief, the other 12 dwarves were all standing in the hall way. Kyona concluded that they looked odd without their armor on; they now just wore boots, shirts and trousers.

"We need to go." Bilbo said urgently, re-shutting the gate and locking it.

Bilbo handed Kyona Fang then slipped his Ring on. They followed the soft 'slap slap' of Bilbo's feet through the winding stone tunnels of Mirkwood's palace. She heard at least all the dwarves mutter about poor stonework along the way.

_'I bet they'd have a thing or two to say about the caves which I grew up in.' _she thought to herself. Then she realized something. The rest of the company knew nothing of her ties to Azog. She had a feeling that they would not take kindly to the news. 

They soon reached what seemed to be a loading dock with many barrels scattered around. Some were full and some were empty.

"Alright, we must do this quickly. They will be dumping the barrels in half an hour." Bilbo said from somewhere around them.

Shortly after the dwarves were packed into barrels, some were stuffed with straw to keep them from bumping around too much. Kyona had picked the smallest barrel she could find. She had rejected the straw Bilbo offered; she didn't want to have straw in her clothes later. Unfortunately her barrel smelled of alcohol. Memories of the morning at Beorn's house made Kyona's stomach queasy.

Bilbo came to her barrel.

"All set?" He asked.

"I should be, as long as you seal this barrel good." She mumbled.

He slammed the lid on the barrel.

"If water starts to leak in, pop the lid." She heard Bilbo's muffled voice say.

Minutes seemed like hours to Kyona as she waited. She could vaguely hear Bilbo slamming the lids on the other barrels, then silence. It was nerve wracking. Then she heard the voices of some rather unhappy elves coming out to where the barrels were kept. She heard several splashes before her barrel started to roll.

She braced her arms and legs against the walls waiting for the impact. The barrel rolled off the dock into the water, making her stomach drop for a moment. Kyona felt the water sloshing against the sides of her barrel. Soon the barrel was speeding along in the water.

The rather uncomfortable girl had no idea how long they had been traveling but all she could think about was the kink in her neck and the cramp in her leg.

Then they hit rapids.

Their barrels were tossed about and bashed brutally against rocks. She heard a couple of barrels pop open around her. Kyona smirked when they went swirling around and a very challenging yell came from Thorin. She was about to try and pop the lid off of her barrel when they was a collision with a rock and a nice _'crack' _and water began to pour into her barrel.

She let out a very loud orcish curse and began to kick at the weakened wall of her barrel. Quickly it began to give way and she slid out of the wooden confines and into the freezing swirling pools around her. She loosely remembered her brothers teaching her how to swim when she was younger. But that was a long time ago.

-oOo-

Thorin heard a loud crack than a rather orcish sounding curse. _Kyona. _He looked around wildly for his beloved. He spotted her a little ways away in the raging water. She was completely out of her barrel and was awkwardly dog paddling towards them. She soon pulled herself up onto a rock and began to rock hop down the river. The dwarf watched in amazement as she jumped rather gracefully onto the rocks. It looked as if she had done it before.

The barrels began to get pulled by the current into a little beach area on the river bank. Soon all thirteen barrels and Bilbo – riding on top of Bombur's unopened barrel – emptied into this sandy little beach. They began to pop out of their barrels and immerge like bedraggled dogs. Thorin himself climbed out of his barrel and waded out into the water to meet Kyona.

-oOo-

There were only a few things that could make Kyona truly laugh, and one of them was wet dwarves. They all looked completely ruined! Their beards and hair were out of their normal pristine weaves and styles and their clothes clung to their skin, making them appear much thinner than they actually were. She was chuckling when she jumped eddy in front of the rock she had been standing on and she was choking with laughter when she resurfaced.

Thorin grabbed her by the arm and pulled her ashore. She was coughing, laughing and shivering all at once.

"What is so amusing?" Thorin asked.

"You dwarves look like drowned dogs!" She laughed, collapsing on the ground.

A few of the dwarves heard and shot her glares.

"Well at least we don't look like a drowned rat!" Bofur retorted, his hat had lost it buoyancy and was flopping on either side of his face.

Kyona glared and began to wring out her thigh length hair. She walked over to the other dwarves who were trying in vain to dry off. She shook her hair, sending droplets of water onto the ground, along with another small item which was carefully woven into her hair.

The forest of Mirkwood loomed behind them and the lonely mountain rested in the distance. They appeared to be a day or two travels from Lake Town.

Kyona was casually wringing out her hair when she heard Bofur say from behind her.

"Eh, what's this?" She didn't pay him any heed.

Then she heard a soft scratching noise, the kind you hear when you blow a whistle but cover the air slot. The girl felt her heart stop and her blood turn cold. She turned around slowly.

"Eh, whistle's broken!" He shrugged as he examined the warg whistle.

Kyona swallowed and locked eyes with Thorin; he saw her pale face and his eyes widened. But all too soon the nightmarish howls of wargs echoed through the forest. The cries of the dwarves went up around her. They were utterly defenseless.

"What have you done…?" She gasped in horror.

"I-I—"Bofur choked out.

"You fool." She spat, grabbing the whistle from the shocked dwarf's hands.

"We have to run!" Thorin yelled.

"No, they will catch you," Kyona said darkly, "Thorin, whatever happens you have to trust me. I will do my best to prolong your lives, but you must act hostile towards me." She said, beginning to put some distance between her and the dwarves.

"Lass, what are you talking about?!" Dwalin yelled.

"I am sorry." She said, hers eyes meeting Dwalin's.

Then Kyona turned and started to run towards the howls of oncoming wargs.


	15. Tarnished Trust

**Chapter Fifteen**

**Tarnished Trust**

* * *

It had been far too long. The chance that Raven would be coming out of those caverns was very, _very _doubtful. Azog was pacing around in the recently made clearing. He and his warriors were at the very edge of Mirkwood, waiting for the whistle – as they had been for almost three weeks.

He knew the Elven king of this realm was wise and ancient. Putting Raven's secret in danger. The constant worry that she had been killed loomed over him like a shadow. It was odd for him to have such attachment to a mere human. But she was different. He had seen her grow into a very capable warrior and leader, more capable than any of his orcs. But he also saw her as something else, a daughter.

The orc pack had been attacked three weeks previous by elves, and a good portion of his warriors and wargs had been killed by the attack, forcing him to summon goblins from the mountains. They were repulsive cowardly creatures that only fought to save themselves; they had no sense of purpose. Azog had already had to kill a couple of them for thieving from some of his most seasoned warriors.

But what had made him most anxious was the things they had said about Raven. They claimed that she had stood and stopped the goblins from decapitating Oakenshield. The thought that she could love that, _creature, _in return made him shudder. The pale orc kept telling himself that she was truly loyal to them, to him. Raven had told him, she had looked him in the eyes and told him she would not fail him. But that little seed of doubt wormed its way into his mind.

His musings were shattered by the sudden excitement from Raven's warg and the other wargs in the pack.

The whistle had been blown.

He grinned and jumped on his white warg, Azazal. He spurred the warg on, his warriors followed in suit. They went bursting out of the forest and down the narrow path that went through Mirkwood toward Lake Town. Within moment the wargs started to get antsy, the dwarves were close.

Azazal leaped through the cover of the trees behind several of the other wargs. The sight in front of him made him grin. Raven stood away from the company, dripping wet and holding her knife, the dwarves looked terrified and infuriated at the same time. They started to yell curses at her. Oakenshield's expression was impassable. But the dwarf met his eye with a furious glare.

Oh, but that wasn't the best thing. The dwarves were completely helpless. They had no armor or weapons. They stood before him, unable to protect themselves.

Raven stood there, her feet planted firmly in the ground. She wore a white linen shirt which dripped with water, brown trousers and boots, and her hunting knife. Her hair hung in clung together stands around her back and shoulders. Her eyes grey were filled with a fear he could not understand.

**"Look father, I have delivered the dwarves into your hands, just as I said!" **She yelled, the dwarves shouted in rage.

The look in her eyes made him worried. They carried sorrow and worry, for what he could not tell.

**"You have done well, Raven." **He said, urging Azazal forward slowly.

She swallowed.

-oOo-

The howls of the wargs reached Bard's ears, his eyes widened; they hadn't been expecting an attack. He reached and blew the horn which lay at his side. The sounds of the warriors preparing for battle reached his ears. He himself shouldered the large long bow he carried as he saddled his horse.

These well trained warriors set out from the small forest fort which lay in the forests outside of Mirkwood and rode hard. They galloped grandly into a clearing, where a most odd sight greeted them.

Orcs stood on one side of the clearing, their leader was pale and scarred. And on the other side of the clearing were 13 dwarves, wet and dripping. But in the middle stood a girl, a normal girl, she had long brown hair that dripped with water and a hunting knife clenched in her left hand.

_"How odd …" _Bard thought before sending an arrow through a warg's head.

-oOo-

Raven stood in between the angry dwarves and the orcs. Her breathing was coming in short ragged gasps, '_It's now or never.' _She thought. But then, horns blew through the woods and out of the cover of the trees burst forth a host of armored men riding great steeds. Several wargs were shot dead from the rider's great, black, bows. Horses were trampling all around her; Kyona couldn't think of anything but the heavy hooves around her, she was on her knees.

But she took a moment and looked up. He gaze met Azog's pale blue gaze, she saw something that she had never seen before… _fear. _Fear for her life. Then it hit her… no literally something collided with her head and knocked her unconscious.

-oOo-

Kyona's grey eyes opened slowly, the light hurting her eyes, a pounding in her head made her groan.

"Kyona?" She heard Thorin's voice ask, but it was distant.

"Mrrrpmgh." Was all she could get out and she closed her eyes.

"Kyona wake up!" Thorin said a little more forcefully.

This made Kyona come round, she sat up and clutched her head.

"What happened?" She murmured.

"A horse nicked your head with its hoof." Thorin explained, touching her face.

"Azog?" She asked.

"He fled the area after you were knocked out."

Kyona pulled her knees up to her chest, noting that her clothes had not been changed since the river.

"What is the matter?" He asked.

"Thorin, I've never seen him like that. He was, _afraid_." She shuddered.

"I am surprised; we weren't much of a threat." Thorin snorted.

"Not for his warriors, for me."

His eyes widened.

"He fears for my life, especially after the little show I put on by the river." She said.

"The others aren't too pleased." Thorin said.

"I'm sure not. Have you told them?"

"No, I figure you should explain."

"Thanks for helping me with that." She gave a small glare.

She looked at the dwarf standing beside the bed she was sitting in. He had changed into a handsome deep blue shirt that was trimmed with silver, his beard and hair had also been re done and cleaned. She smiled, he looked rather nice, and then her smile faded.

"Where are we?" She asked.

"Lake Town, it is a town built on the lake with lies beneath Erebor's shadow." He said.

"How long will we be here?"

"I do not know, but I do know the others are impatient to hear your tale." Thorin stated.

She huffed.

"Lead the way."

-oOo-

Going down those wooden stairs was rather nerve wracking for Kyona; she was rubbing her forearm brutally with nervous energy. When she came down the stairs to the main floor of the house she found that every member of the company stood waiting for her.

"You'd better one damn good reason for this!" Dwalin said menacingly.

"Dwalin." Thorin warned, shooting the tall dwarf a glare.

Kyona cleared her throat.

"Well, you all witnessed that scene by the river – "she clapped her hands together, "— and I hope I haven't ruined any chance of trust that we may have had."

"Oh you've done more than ruined – "

"Shut up and let me talk." She spat at Gloin who had started to interrupt.

The red headed dwarf began to protest when a glare from Thorin stopped him.

"I don't really know how to tell you all this, so I'm going to tell you a story." She said.

'_Oh Vala Ky, what are you doing?' _A voice said in her head, but she shook it off.

"No more excuses! We want answers!" Óin bellowed.

"Let her speak!" Thorin yelled.

"Do you honestly believe her Thorin? Love has clouded your mind!" Dwalin yelled.

"I said, Let. Her. Speak." Thorin yelled back.

"Not too long ago, there was a little girl," Kyona began.

"She wasn't like all the other little girls in her village, she didn't like dresses or dolls, she liked trousers and knives, like her older brothers. This greatly disappointed her mother who was a mean and spiteful woman.

But one day, it all changed. Her village was attacked by orcs; the poor little girl was confused and afraid, so she grabbed a hunting knife off her father's dead body and hid in the snow. She was cold and in shock, she had seen her family murdered in front of her, not that she cared, she cared little for the people in her village.

The girl heard a scuffling above her, not thinking, she jumped up and stabbed the moving thing above her. It was an orc. And she had killed it. The orcs leader saw this and sent two more orcs after her, and she killed them too. Their pale leader decide to end her himself, But then he chose to spare her, and raise her to be like them.

So, she was raised among the orcs. But she never truly became like them, their leader was proud and didn't believe in cowering in the shadows. He taught her everything he knew, and eventually she became his councilor, she advised him. She was at his right hand, he trusted her.

Until one day, one day he asked her to do something that she had never done before. She would go as an undercover emissary to behind their enemies' lines. This scared her, but she wouldn't disappoint him.

So she went to their enemy, she tricked them into believing she was nothing more than a lost woman. At first she wanted nothing more than to kill them, but after time she grew to realize that the orc may have been wrong. Wrong about the world, there was no need for killing and hatred. She learned what loyalty and friendship really was… what love was."

Kyona looked at Thorin.

"But no matter, she betrayed them when they needed her most. She disclosed their quest's destination to the orc when she could have left it alone. She chose to not betray them a second time, but the orc still found them. And in a moment of realization she found that the orc was wrong, he had always been wrong. My loyalties changed and I _will _do whatever it takes to protect them from the orc." Kyona finished, her eyes meeting with every single member of the company.

She looked down at her feet; she hadn't realized that tears had started to pour out of her eyes.

"Lass, I'm sorry." Bofur stuttered.

"I know." Kyona said.

"I can't believe it, you were _raised _by orcs!" Kíli shook his head.

"And am I much different than you?" She challenged.

Kíli looked ashamed and turned away.

"Thorin, are you sure we can trust her?" Gloin asked, he wasn't convinced.

"Yes, we can trust her. We can trust her with our lives." Thorin said, looking to the woman standing by the fire place, rubbing her left forearm.


	16. Meetings and Reunions

**Chapter Sixteen**

**Reunions and Meetings**

* * *

No matter how hard she tried she could not get over the zeal of the local people. Kyona was amazed at their utter love for the dwarves, and her. If any of the company even set foot outside the door they were bombarded by the citizens of Lake Town.

Now it hadn't taken long for the Master of Lake Town to realize that Kyona was one of the company, mater of fact, he had found out soon after that she had not been properly welcomed. So he had proceeded to send a few maids to help her dress… to Kyona's utter distaste.

"Lassie, we're all girls here, no need to be shy!" An older woman told her.

Kyona was very pale; if they helped her dress then they might see the named carved into her arm.

"N-no, I'm fine!" She tried to convince them… but they didn't listen.

The whole time the bathed and dressed her Kyona tried to have a hand covering her forearm. Thankfully none of the maids saw the gruesomely carved name.

The fashions in Lake Town were different than what Kyona was used to. The dresses were more fitting and low in the chest. They also had corsets. Those things, Kyona decided, were evil at its core.

Kyona grimaced when she looked into the mirror. The deep emerald dress came down to the floor and around her waist was a brown 'decorative' corset (even though the thing was tightened to a painful extremity). She glared at her prettied up face and curled brown hair. Her appearance reminded her of the ridiculous showy girls in her old village. The powder, lip stain, and eye coal made her look even more ridiculous. She gave a very unladylike growl and turned towards the door.

Kyona bounded down the stairs and came into the main foyer where a few dwarves mingled. Some of them shot her glares, she turned her head and tried to make her way out the door. But before she could escape, two dwarves came up to either side of her.

"Hello Ky!"Kíli piped.

"Oh, hello." She muttered.

"We were wondering if you would like to join us on a guided tour of the town!" Fíli asked.

Kyona swallowed, it's not like she had anything better to do.

"Sure, I would love to." She said slowly.

The brothers gave her wide grins and slipped their arms through her arms and pushed their way out the door. The bright sun made them squint. Almost immediately people began to flock towards them.

"Who knew we were so attractive." Fíli smirked.

"I don't think it's us they're looking at." Kíli said, the brothers looked at Kyona.

A small blush rose to her cheeks.

"I highly doubt that." She said.

"Oh I would doubt yourself Ky, you look rather lovely." Kíli smirked.

Kyona huffed, _'That's the problem.' _She glared at the sky.

Kíli was about to make a comment about the lovely weather when a girl around Kyona's age came bouncing up to the trio.

"Hello!" The girl grinned; her hands were clasped together in front of her and a large grin on her face. "My name is Karri; I will be your guide for the day!"

Kyona took in the girl's appearance. She was shorter for a human, still taller than Fíli, Kíli and herself, she had a round pretty face with very, _very_ curly brown hair that stopped at her chin and puffed out to the sides slightly. Her doe brown eyes sparkled with happiness and her smile was wide and beautiful. Ky looked to the dwarf brothers, Kíli was smirking at his brother, whose jaw was slack and his eyes wide.

A small smirk formed on Kyona's stained red lips, '_Oh, I see. Harboring a little crush are we Fíli?'_

"I believe we owe you our names." Kyona said.

"I'm Kíli." The dark haired dwarf gave a charming smile.

"A-and I'm Fíli." The poor smitten dwarf stammered out.

Kyona smirked.

"Kyona." She nodded to Karri.

"It's so wonderful to meet you three!" Karri beamed; Ky couldn't help but notice that her eyes looked at Fíli more than herself and his brother.

The day was quite entertaining for the other two members, it was blatantly obvious that Fíli was in love, and Karri was seemingly returning the favor. She would blush when the blonde dwarf would look towards her.

The town was built close together and the streets were filled with market foods and children running to and fro. The normal life of these people fascinated Kyona. The thought that this was what her life could have been if Azog had not come was somewhat troublesome in her mind.

What amazed Kyona the most was the food. As they passed down the street merchants would bring out all sorts of food and drink samples, almost begging for them to try some. Kyona eagerly obliged. But regretted it by the end of the day when she felt rather bloated and uncomfortable.

The sun was setting as the tour came to an end. Karri and Fíli had been talking to each other more and more in the past while. Kíli and Kyona were feeling more and more intrusive. Finally Kíli decided to head back to the house where the dwarves were housed.

"Thank you, Lady Karri, for showing us around the village." The dark haired dwarf bowed and smiled.

"I am so glad to have met you, but I believe me and Master Kíli are worn out." Kyona smiled and nodded.

"It was an honor for me to be your guide!" Karri beamed.

Kyona smiled softly, she felt as if the light in this girl's eyes could never be put out.

"Do you mind joining me on a walk?" Fíli asked softly, offering Karri his arm.

Karri blushed and took his arm; the couple began to make their way towards the docks. After they were out of ear shot Kíli gave a fake sniffle.

"I cannot believe it, both my uncle and my brother, hopelessly in love!" Kíli said with mock emotion.

"Your turn next." Kyona grinned evilly.

Kíli's eyes went wide in horror.

"No, no, no, love isn't my thing. Plus I do not believe that any girl would be fond of a dwarven archer!"

"You'd be surprised. I think there are a many girls out there who would swoon for you at first sight." Kyona smirked as she began to make her way towards the other end of the town, where their lodge was located.

As they made their way through the retiring town Kyona couldn't help but feel Kíli watching her.

"I hope you love him, because of you betray him you will have every single member of the company coming for your head." He said darkly after a moment.

Kyona stopped in the middle of the road.

"You still don't trust me, do you?"

"I trust you enough, I respect my Uncle, and he trusts you, it is usually agreeable if my uncle trusts somebody."

Kyona looked down at the wooden planks beneath her feet and sighed.

"Tread carefully around the older dwarves; they do not trust you in the slightest." Kíli warned.

"Will they ever?" She asked.

"Probably not. Unless, you do something that puts your own safety at risk for the well being of Thorin or the rest of the company, well, you're out of luck." Kíli said simply before walking quickly off towards the house.

Kyona stood dejectedly in the middle of the road, her shoulders sagging in defeat. She had dared to believe that the dwarves would trust her. The searing heat of angry tears came to her grey eyes. Curse those dwarves and their stubbornness! She clenched her fists and walked to a nearby peer that jutted out over the water. She sat down over the edge, letting the tips of her shoes touch the water.

The sunset had made the water reflect a deep red hue; the sun was a glowing golden orb disappearing over the horizon. Kyona sat there until the first star appeared in the darkening sky. She sighed and looked towards the lonely mountain. There, deep in its stone depths was a dragon, a dragon who had taken Erebor from the dwarves, from Thorin. This thought made Kyona's blood boil.

Her angry thoughts we shaken when she heard the soft thud of boots behind her. She did not recognize the footfalls. She turned her head quickly to see who was behind her. Kyona was surprised to see a man standing behind her, he was wearing dark earthy colors, he had a stern brooding expression and a large black long bow strung over his shoulder. Something seemed vaguely familiar about him.

"The mountain is grand, isn't it? I have lived in its shadow for many years now." The man said, looking at the mountain in a wistful way.

"Yes, it is quite grand." Kyona replied, eye narrowed suspicion.

The man gave the barest of smirks.

"I am called Bard, if you were wondering." He introduced, stepping closer to her.

_'Bard, where have I heard that name before?'_ Kyona thought.

"Kyona." She said in almost a warning tone.

He just looked at her for a moment his dark grey eyes seemingly scrutinizing her… something about him was all too familiar.

"It cannot be…" He whispered.

"I'm sorry but is there something wrong?" She asked.

"Do people still call you Raven?" He asked.

Kyona's eyes widened and she sprang to her feet, reaching for a knife but realized Fang was still back at the lodging house.

"How do you know that name?" She spat.

Bard remained calm.

"I gave it to you, sister."

Then it hit her. This was her brother, Bard, one of the twins who had been much older than her.

"Y-you were killed! I saw you die!" She said her voice breaking.

"No, you saw my childhood friend die; I hid from the orcs once they left our home." Bard explained.

Tears were stinging her eyes; she didn't know how to react to this.

"I saw them take you, that pale orc, the one from the clearing earlier today." He stepped closer.

"Yes, they took me and raised me."

Pain was evident in Bard's eyes.

"I would have come for you, but I could never find you. I spent years trying to track you down, but I failed. After many years I came here to Lake Town, where I discovered our heritage. Our father was the only son born from an ancient line of kings; they were the ancient rulers of Dale. But our father was a coward, he ran from the responsibility of it all. He hid in the village where he met out mother and we were born." Bard said.

"You have been looking for me?" Kyona asked, awe in her voice.

"Yes, I was still looking for you until yesterday, when I saw you in the clearing." He reached out and touched her cheek.

"You have grown beautiful sister; surely a man has captured your heart?" He asked softly.

She smirked.

"I am to be married to Thorin Oakenshield."

Bard's eyes widened.

"Y-you're marrying a dwarf?"

"Yes, and you will have no say in the matter." She nodded, her mind was set.

Bard smiled,

"You are just as stubborn as you were thirteen years ago."

"The orcs helped build up my stubbornness no doubt." She said, immediately regretting it.

"What did they do to you?" His eyes glinted with protection.

"Trained me to kill, I was Azog's most trusted general and advisor." She said.

"Is that why you stood between the orcs and the dwarves?"

"Yes, I would not let them hurt the dwarves."

"So your loyalties lie fully with the dwarves?" Bard asked.

"Yes, my future husband is their king, I would never betray them."

"May I meet him?" Bard smiled.

"I am sure he would wish to meet my long lost brother." She grinned and waved him to follow.

As she led him along the quickly darkening street memories started to resurface of her childhood. Her brothers, yes, she remembered their names now, Bard and Bain. Bain was the mean one, and Bard was the loving one. She clearly remembered Bain pushing her out of a tree and Bard helping her up and tending to her scratches and bruises.

"That hunting knife you wielded earlier today, is that father's?" Bard asked.

"Yes, I took it from his body after the orcs had moved away."

Bard nodded and continued walking. Kyona couldn't help but feel a slight knot of worry in her stomach; the dwarves did not take kindly to strangers.

-oOo-

Worry filled Thorin's heart; he had not seen Kyona all day. Matter of fact, he hadn't seen her since the evening before when the rest of the company had learned her identity. He was sitting by the fire smoking his pipe. It was a relaxing habit, it always cleared his head. It was finally peaceful about the lodging house. The other members of the company were at the dining hall with the Master of town. He had decided to stay and wait for Kyona.

The door suddenly opened and Kíli came bouncing in. Thorin expected Fíli to come in right after him, but when Fíli failed to follow, his worry increased.

"Where is your brother?" Thorin asked.

Kíli gave a very disconcerting smirk.

"He and our guide were getting along quite well; he was taking a 'private tour' I believe."

Thorin fought the urge to roll his eyes.

"And Kyona, where is she?"

Kíli's smirk fell.

"She was right behind me…" He turned and looked at the door which was firmly closed.

"I suppose she wanted some more fresh air. Don't worry uncle, she can handle herself." Kíli smiled and bounced away.

Thorin's eyes wandered to the mantel above the fireplace, there, resting calmly on the wooden shelf was Fang. Thorin sighed; of course she had failed to take her knife.

_'I will wait, but if she does not show soon I will seek her out.' _Thorin thought.

A good half an hour passed and Thorin grew more and more worried. He stood to leave the lodge when the door opened and Kyona came in cautiously, her grey eyes widened when she saw Thorin standing before.

"Oh, hello, Thorin!" She smiled sheepishly.

She was up to something.

"Kyona…" He warned.

Just then he saw the outline of a man in the shadow of the door. Rage filled him. _Who was this man? Why was he with Kyona? _

"Thorin, I can explain! Just let me –"

"Who is he?" Thorin spat.

Just then the man came into the dim firelight. Thorin held back a gasp, their eyes, he and Kyona had identical eyes.

"This is my brother, Bard." She introduced.

"Your brother? I thought your family was killed when the orcs attacked your village!" Thorin asked, still suspicious.

"As did I, but apparently not."

Bard nodded to the dwarf king.

"I have searched for my sister for many years. Never did I expect her to find me." Bard said serenely.

The tension in Thorin's body subsided at this. This was Kyona's brother, not some man challenging him for her love.

The dwarf nodded.

"I had no knowledge that the leader of our rescue party was the brother of my fiancée."

"Ah yes, when do you plan to be wedded?" Bard asked.

Thorin looked to Kyona who shrugged.

"When our business in Erebor is finished." Thorin replied, giving Bard a wary look.

"I do not expect that you will take her to the Lonely Mountain until the dragon has been dealt with?"

Thorin opened his mouth to reply, but he had nothing to say. He hadn't thought of the possibility that Kyona should stay in Lake Town while they slay the dragon.

"She –"

"Will _not_ stay here while you dwarves risk your necks to reclaim your homeland!" Kyona gave Thorin a glare, the fire in her eyes told him that she would not do otherwise.

Bard smirked softly.

"I do not think you have a say in the matter, Master Dwarf, she has already made up her mind."

Kyona nodded firmly.

Thorin couldn't help but let a small smile slip to his lips, she was a stubborn girl.

"Aye, but I am also the king." Thorin said good naturedly.

Kyona gave a challenging smirk.

"But I am soon to be the queen."

"And that is why you must be kept safe." Thorin smirked.

She glared, knowing he had won.

"The night is getting late and I must be on my way." Bard nodded to his sister then to her fiancée before turning and leaving the house. The door shut.

"You had no knowledge of his existence?" Thorin asked after he had left.

"None, he came out of nowhere. But there is no doubt that we are related." Kyona slumped her shoulders.

"I hear you saw the town today?" Thorin asked while moving back to his chair by the fire, dragging a stool over for Kyona.

She smiled warmly while sitting down beside him.

"Yes, it was quite enjoyable; your nephews are good company…as was our guide." At that she smirked playfully.

"Tell me about this…'guide'." Thorin said while lighting his pipe.

"Her name is Karri; she is a short, pretty, and very happy human girl who showed us around town. Fíli was absolutely smitten with her."

Thorin choked on his smoke.

"Is there something wrong with a dwarf falling in love with a human?" Kyona raised a brow.

"No, no, not that, I was not expecting Fíli to find love so young." Thorin said, regaining his composer.

"Took you long enough." She grinned. Thorin gave a half hearted glare before giving a small grin.

"I am glad I did."

"Me too." She said, leaning into to him.

They were about to kiss when the door opened loudly – they pulled away – and a beaming Fíli came practically galloping into the house. His cheeks were flushed and he was grinning ear to ear.

"She kissed me!" He was murmuring to himself as he ran up the stairs.

Kyona shot Thorin a told-you-so grin, Thorin muttered darkly about interrupting a moment.

"Thorin, we will have plenty more moments, let Fíli have his." She smiled, taking Thorin's hand.

"I know that, love, it is just hard for me to see my nephews growing into adults." He said, taking a deep puff of smoke.

Kyona wrinkled her nose when he exhaled the smoke. He noticed her discomfort.

"Does this bother you?" He asked, the traces of a smile on his lips.

"Why on earth do you dwarves breathe in smoke on purpose?" She coughed, waving her hand to fan the smoke away from her face.

Thorin chuckled deeply before setting his pipe on the table.

"If anything ever displeases you do not hesitate to inform me." He smiled before running his hand through her curled brown hair.

"You look beautiful." He murmured.

"No thanks to those maids, they powdered me up, slathered that stuff all over my face, and curled my hair! If this is what most humans consider beautiful… then I haven't and _won't_ fit the bill." She grumbled.

"In our society woman are precious treasures to be guarded with upmost care." Thorin told her.

She smiled.

"It is good to know I am loved."

"You will always be." Thorin pulled her close and kissed her deeply, but she pulled away suddenly.

"Thorin, you taste like smoke."

Thorin sighed and place his forehead against hers.

"I love you Kyona, even though you are the oddest woman I have ever met."

"Glad I hold the honor."

"How could you not." Thorin rolled his eyes.

She smirked and gave him a peck on the cheek.

"I'm off to bed." She said, hoping up and heading towards the stairs.

"Good night Kyona." Thorn smiled softly.

"Goodnight Thorin." Kyona said as she retreated up the stairs.

Thorin watched the fire flicker and dance in the dark shadowy room. His pipe lay untouched on the table; he did not want to go against his queen's wishes.

It wasn't long before the rest of the company came stumbling back to the lodging, drunk as heck. Thorin sighed; his companions were all laughing and singing merrily.

_'This is how it should be when we reclaim Erebor.' _Thorin smiled at the thought.

An image of a future Erebor flashed through Thorin's mind. He could see his kinsmen celebrating around a long stone table, and he and Kyona sitting at the head, but at his left hand there was a small chair, a chair where a child sat.

Thorin's mind snapped to attention. _A child? _The thought had not occurred to him before. The image of Kyona being a mother was a… interesting thought. Although he could see the picture clear as day, the prospect of him being a father frightened him. Even when Fíli and Kíli were young, Dís took care of them, he was merely overseeing their training.

The future king of the mountain sat back in his chair and resumed his fire-staring, thinking deeply of the future of his people and of his future wife. All these things seemed so close, but yet so far away.

* * *

**AN: _Karri is pronounced '_**_**Car-ee' **_


	17. Wouldn't Hurt a Fly

**Chapter Seventeen**

**Wouldn't Hurt a Fly**

* * *

The morning was grey and dreary as the dwarves loaded their packs onto the long boats. It had been a fortnight since they had come to Lake Town. But Thorin had grown anxious, they were wasting precious time. Durin's Day was soon approaching. And Thorin wished to be at the hidden door with time to spare.

The dwarf king felt guilty about taking Kyona and Fíli away, they both had made connections within this human civilization. Fíli had been spending most of his waking moments with Karri, and Kyona with Bard. Kyona's special attention towards Bard made Thorin feel a twinge of jealousy. She should be spending time with him, not her long lost brother! But then his sensible side would remind him that he and Kyona had many years together.

-oOo-

Kyona threw her pack into the boat; it was stuffed to the brim with cram (long lasting food) and other items for their journey. She was quite gloomy about departing Lake Town; she would miss her brother dearly. Even though Bard was quite grim and always foretelling bad tidings, Kyona felt a connection to him.

The future queen under the mountain glared up at the grey sky when a water droplet hit her nose. She was mumbling darkly under her breath when a familiar voice spoke to her.

"It was foolish of you to forget a cloak. You could catch a cold and die."

Kyona huffed.

"Bard, the chances of me catching a cold and dying are very slim."

She turned to face her older brother who had a black bundle in his arms.

"You never know. That is why I have taken the liberty to give you one." Bard handed her the dark bundle in his arms.

She almost gasped when she unfurled it. It was a very well made cloak. Black as a shadow it was made out of a light, flexible, waterproof, fabric which was sewn almost as a coat. It had arm slots which were loose and flowing and came down around her knees in a taper. Kyona flicked the hood up; it hid her face in a shadow.

"This is perfect," She grinned. "I feel like a shadow."

"You look like one." Bard smiled and clapped her gently on the shoulder.

"Be careful, sister. A dragon awaits you at the mountain – try not to rile him up." Bard ruffled the top of her head affectionately.

"I will, I highly doubt that I will get hurt, I have a dwarven bodyguard at my side." She cast a glance at Thorin.

"You still have time to change your mind…"

"I won't be changing my mind anytime soon."

Bard sighed.

"As I thought. Farewell sister, may your feet be swift and your mind sharp."

Kyona nodded solemnly, before giving him a quick hug. She turned on her heels and walked briskly towards the dwarves – who were murmuring amongst themselves. Kyona strode up to Kíli, Bofur and Balin.

"Hello Ky." Kíli smiled, he had often been her companion at dinner times when the older dwarves were ignoring her, Thorin was busy talking with the Master, and Fíli was with Karri.

The older dwarves had all but ignored her. If she tried to speak with them they would rush away, muttering under their breath. It frustrated her to no end.

"Hello Kíli." She greeted kindly.

Balin kept busy with his itinerary and Bofur took special interest in the cloudy sky.

Cold anger bubbled up inside of her.

"You can stop ignoring me any day now." Kyona spat, the icy edge in her voice made the two older dwarves nervous.

Balin flicked his eyes up to hers; he saw the fury in their stony depths.

"We haven't been ignoring ya lass!" Bofur denied.

"Mmm, I beg to differ." Kyona glared.

Guilt flashed in Bofur's eyes.

"We aren't sure how to handle you; you betrayed us to the orcs." Bofur explained.

"Who blew the whistle?" She pointed out in anger.

Bofur gulped.

"I didn't know!"

"For future reference you shouldn't go around and blow random whistles that you find on the ground!" She said.

Suddenly Bofur found his feet quite interesting.

She glared at him sharply.

"You dwarves should trust your leaders judgment, Thorin trusts me with his life, so should you." Kyona turned quickly, her hair flipping behind her.

She stormed away in a flurry of anger. The three dwarves stared after her, realizing that her words were true. They trusted Thorin's judgment, and he was going to marry her… they really had no reason they shouldn't trust her.

Kíli sighed.

"She really isn't that bad. She loves Thorin deeply; she will not betray us again."

"Aye, you might be right laddie. But an apple doesn't fall far from the tree." Balin said grimly.

"Azog is an orc; he doesn't care for a young human girl." Bofur snorted.

Balin looked at him, brows raised.

"Laddie, she called him 'father' in orcish."

Kíli and Bofur's eyes practically popped out of their heads.

"You two don't understand the Black Speech, I on the other hand, know it well." Balin said.

"I had no idea…" Kíli muttered.

"Don't treat her any differently! That will anger her greatly. Remember lads, she is betrothed to the leader of our company, _our king_. It would be wise to respect and trust her if ye don't want Thorin after your hide."

They both nodded, trying to process the new information. After a moment Kíli sighed and turned away to find his brother, but stopped short when he saw Fíli and Karri have a rather, passionate good bye. The young dwarf prince smiled sadly. All around him the ones he held dear were being torn away from him.

-oOo-

And to think Kyona had thought that the Misty Mountains had been miserable! Bah, it was nothing compared to the gloom and repetitiveness that their trip to Erebor adapted to after the two days of rowing. They had entered the Desolation of Smaug. Everything past the fertile river banks was a ruined wasteland. It went on for miles until the Lonely Mountain jutted up out of the earth like a large tooth.

Crows would screech out above them, their cries echoing through the bleak countryside. It unnerved the company. Kyona was uncomfortable, the dwarves were trying their hardest to be 'kind' to her, but she could see all that they were doing was fake. The only people in their group of fourteen who was genuinely nice to her were Thorin, Bilbo, Fíli and Kíli.

But the day came when she was able to prove herself to them.

The morning had started like any other day before: the company woke up, ate, broke camp and started on their way, except Bilbo. He had spotted something plodding along behind them in the distance. He immediately went to Thorin.

"Thorin, there is something following us!" He whispered.

Thorin's eyes widened, he turned and looked behind them, searching the grey wasteland behind them. Kyona had been alerted by the activity.

"What's going on?" She asked quietly, making her way towards them.

"Bilbo says he spotted something following us." Thorin said, not taking his eyes off the horizon.

Kyona squinted her eyes, searching the bleak wasteland. Her grey eyes widened when she saw a small fox looking thing following in the distance… except, it was no fox.

It was a warg.

"Thorin," she started nervously. "I know what it is, it's a warg."

Thorin's eyes flashed in anger.

"What?! You led warg scouts to us?" He whispered.

"No, no, no! That is not a warg scout! Scouts always travel in groups of three, no more, no less!" She said.

Thorin gave her a small glare.

"Then why is it following us?" He said, warning in his tone.

Kyona gave another glance towards the oncoming warg, watching it closely.

"Because, that's my warg. I don't know why she is here…" Kyona said, uncomfortably.

Thorin raised a brow.

"You have a warg?"

"Of course I do!" She said indignantly.

"Why am I not surprised?" Thorin huffed, turning towards the other dwarves.

Kyona shifted nervously; there was no telling why Cainis had followed them. And that worried her greatly. She vaguely heard Thorin telling the company to move out.

"You have a warg?" She heard a curious voice ask her.

She turned and saw Bilbo looking guilty but intrigued.

"Yes, I do," She smirked. "Would you like me to tell you about her?"

Bilbo's sheepish face told her the clear answer was _yes. _

"Well, where to begin!" She started, swinging up on her lazy pony and bringing up the rear of the group with Bilbo at her side.

"When I was still young, about six months after Azog brought me to the orcs, he decided that it was time for me to train a warg. As you can imagine Azog wasn't the most gentle of teachers, he threw me into a pit with a basket of meat and some wargs pups. Now I might add these were some mean little pups!" She smirked, remembering her childhood troubles.

"All of them were big mean male pups, except one. She was a female runt, lighter in color than the males. What made me like her was her toughness, if any of the boys tried to rough her up she would shake them off. You can imagine which warg I chose. At first Azog didn't approve, but then he saw how well we worked as a team, and how protective she was of me. He eventually came to terms with it."

"I didn't know there were female wargs…" Bilbo speculated.

Kyona snorted.

"Wargs need to reproduce somehow!"

Bilbo flushed with embarrassment.

"Of course, I knew that."

The two rode in silence for a while, Kyona turned to see if Cainis was still following them. The warg wasn't in sight. This made Kyona a bit uneasy.

"Ky, are there any female orcs?" Bilbo asked suddenly.

She stopped her pony; this wasn't a topic she liked to discuss.

"Yes, they are." She said.

"Then why don't we ever see them?"

She looked down.

"Because they are worth nothing to the males beyond the point of reproduction." Kyona spat angrily.

"You have seen them?"

"Of course I have! I lived in an orc stronghold for thirteen years." She was angry now, she remembered the first time she saw female orcs, it wasn't a day she liked to remember.

*_Flashback*_

_Azog walked with a young Kyona by his side. She had gotten in quite a bit of trouble today by angering some rather large brutes. It hadn't gone well. She was sporting a shallow slice along her throat. The pale orc was going to show her where she could be living if she didn't shape up. _

_Two orc guards were standing by a rather mean looking gate. They snapped to attention when the pair came around the bend. They immediately opened the gate. The sight that greeted Kyona's eight year old eyes would be stained in her mind forever. _

_They had entered a huge cavern and all around them were very sick looking female orcs. They were not as twisted and ugly as the males. But they were hunched and thin, wild haunted eyes stared at them. Kyona's mouth hung open._

**_"If you don't shape up soon this is where you will be, with the other females."_**_ Azog threatened._

_"Why are they like this?" She whispered in broken Black Speech._

**_"Because they're worthless, but you on the other hand show great potential. I would hate to see your skills go to waste."_ **

_*End Flashback*_

The memory of that poverty haunted her. Their eyes were so pleading and frightened. Azog had never let her go back there, he knew she would try and help them.

"Kyona, Kyona are you alright?" Bilbo asked.

"Oh, yes, I'm fine." She shook off the memory.

-oOo-

They rode on for a while longer, the silence was deafening and tense. The constant sway of the pony made Kyona go into a drowsy state. She wouldn't have come out of that state unless a very nervous looking Ori had slipped back discreetly to her and Bilbo.

"Miss Kyona, is it really true that you trained a warg?" He whispered quietly, casting a glance at his two older brothers.

She smiled; he had obviously overheard her and Bilbo's conversation earlier in the day.

"Of course it is. Why would I lie?"

Ori looked uncomfortable.

She sighed.

"Look, I know you and your brothers don't trust me, but please, I mean you no harm."

"They wouldn't tell me, but they said you had said something rather disturbing in orcish at the river." He whispered as if he was telling her a secret.

_What? _

Kyona could remember saying anything to disturbing at the river, other than the fact that she told Azog that she had delivered the dwarves into his hands.

"They said it was something you called, _him." _

"Who Azog?!" She said.

Ori froze up when she said his name as if she had uttered some curse word. Kyona tried not to laugh when he nodded and cast a nervous glance towards the other dwarves.

"I don't know what they're –"Kyona froze.

_Oh no_, she had called him father! In front of the entire company!

'_How could I have been so stupid?!' _She mentally yelled.

"Oh, um, yes well now that I think about it I may have said something." She said awkwardly.

"What did you say?" Ori asked, his eyes wide with curiosity.

"Your brothers obviously don't want you to know, I will respect their decision."

Disappointment was written all over the young scribe's face.

"Ach, don't be disappointed! You aren't missing much; just forget about it and –"A low vicious growl interrupted her.

Kyona spun her head around to her left where a thick patch of underbrush stood.

"What was that?!" Dwalin yelled from the front, pulling out his war hammer.

"Cainis." She breathed as the warg sprang towards Ori.

The girl reacted faster than she thought possible. Before anyone could blink Ori was on the ground and Kyona stood between him and Cainis. The ponies were squealing and rearing in fright.

**"Back Cainis! Back, back!" **She yelled loudly in orcish.

The dwarves stood opened mouth as the warg cowered with her tail between her legs.

**"Good girl, now sit." **

Cainis refused.

**"Sit Cainis, SIT!" **She yelled.

The warg huffed and sat down heavily, quietly snarling at the dwarves. Kyona straightened up and brushed her cloak off. She turned to see all other members of the company staring at her, jaws slack.

"What?" She snapped.

"Y-you just told it to sit!" Dori stuttered.

"And it sat!" Nori finished.

"Of course _she _did! She's my warg!" Kyona said defensively.

"Now it's a she!" Dwalin growled.

Kyona shot a glare at him.

"Would you like me to prove it to you?" Gesturing towards the wargs rear end.

"No."

She smirked.

"Kyona what on earth are we going to do with a warg?" Thorin said exasperatedly, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Kyona looked at Cainis who seemed to be glaring at her.

"She could help carry stuff…" Kyona offered.

"And it eat us along the way, not likely!" Dwalin snapped.

"She won't eat you, see watch!" Kyona huffed.

Kyona walked over to Cainis and started to scratching the wargs long ears, Cainis sighed and closed her eyes, giving a contented rumble in her chest.

"Well I'll be… scratch a warg on its ears and it becomes and over grown puppy dog!" Bofur exclaimed.

"Feed a warg putrid meat and it's your friend for life." Kyona smirked.

The dwarves stood there, watching the girl and warg.

"Do all wargs react this way to you?" Kíli asked cautiously.

"Most, some don't like me but are bound by their alpha to protect me."

Thorin gave a confused look.

"Bound by their alpha?"

"They have been ordered by Azazal to not harm me."

"Ack! Who's Azazal?! Another orc raised girl?" Dwalin yelled, causing Cainis to growl defensively and Thorin to shoot him a glare.

"Azazal is the white warg, she has seen to it that her master's pup is taken care of and will not be harmed by the members of her pack." Kyona said quietly.

This made the dwarves go silent.

"You're saying that that creature has a name?" Thorin spat.

"Of course! I gave it to her; I gave all the wargs names actually."

The dwarves just stared at her.

She glared at them.

"You dwarves are so stubborn! I just saved Ori's life and all you can do it gape at me like fish!"

Apparently they hadn't realized that till just then.

Dori cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Thank you, for saving our brother."

"You're welcome." Kyona nodded in satisfaction.

"Just to let you all know if I had wanted to betray you I certainly would not have saved Ori's life."

"Aye, she does have a point, lads." Balin sighed.

Kyona looked to Thorin for some sort of support; but he was simply watching her interactions intently.

"You see, I'm not going to kill you all in your sleep." She said in a mocking tone.

"You called that orc father!" Dwalin said angrily.

"Yes, and if I had not he would have immediately known that I was betraying him."

The tall dwarf went silent at this.

"Everything I have done recently has been with you, not against you. But you still refuse to trust me or even acknowledge me as a member of the company!"

Thorin's eyes snapped up to her.

"Have they been giving you trouble?" He asked sharply.

"No, they have been ignoring me and avoiding me like the plague."

Thorin rounded on his kin.

"Is this true?!"

The dwarves looked sheepishly at their feet.

"I cannot believe this. I am betrothed to her and you still treat her like an outsider?!" Thorn yelled, looking pointedly at Dwalin.

"I was a fool to not have seen this before." Thorin growled.

Guilt was eminent in the company's eyes. They hadn't really thought it through, but hearing their leader vocalize her status made them think about their actions.

"We're sorry lass. We meant, at least I meant no disrespect." Bofur apologized sincerely.

Kyona stood, scratching her warg's ears, contemplating his apology.

"Apology accepted." She said after a moment.

The hat wearing dwarf smiled. The other dwarves visibly lightened up.

"Good, I am glad this is settled." Thorin said, giving Dwalin a stern glance. "We have stalled long enough; we must get a move on."

Kyona sighed, looking at Cainis who looked back at her with pleading eyes.

"Oh fine." She huffed.

The warg's ears perked up and she started to get excited, bouncing and frolicking around Kyona. She laughed lightly as the warg bounded up to her, her tail wagging slightly. She swung up onto the warg's back, smiling as she felt the familiar feel of Cainis's lean muscled body. Kyona's pony was watching from a distance, the white of its eyes showing. Cainis licked her lips at the healthy pony.

**"Don't even _think_ about eating that pony…"**Kyona warned her warg.

Cainis huffed and shuffled forward dejectedly. The pony began to skirt skittishly to the main part of the company. Bilbo was visibly paler when Kyona came up beside him on the warg.

"Does she bite?" He asked.

"Of course she does! Don't go trying to pet her; she will bite your arm off."

Kyona chuckled when Bilbo turned a greenish hue.

"Lighten up Bilbo! As long as I am with her she won't harm a fly!" Just she said that a fly came buzzing around their heads, Cainis snapped viciously at it, ending its life between her razor sharp teeth. Kyona smiled sheepishly at the hobbit, who was glaring at her.

"Wouldn't hurt a fly huh…?" He mumbled darkly under his breath.

-oOo-

Thorin watched Kyona on her warg. It was terrifying. She rode it with such calm effortlessness it almost made him sick. She looked as if she was supposed to be there, her manner was cold and controlling. Almost for a moment he could see the orcish side to her, the dangerous light in her eyes. He hoped he would never have to see her in battle with the warg. They could be a dangerous pair.


	18. When the Dragon Came

**Chapter Eighteen**

**When the Dragon Came**

* * *

The camp that night was quiet and solemn. The dwarves were feeling a bit under the weather. Kyona was quite content and cheerful compared to her comrades; she hadn't realized how much she had missed Cainis. The warg had apparently missed her as well.

Kyona returned from taking Cainis hunting and sat down beside the campfire. The dwarves were smoking their pipes silently, staring into the flickering orange flame. She felt a presence sit down beside her, it was Thorin. He took her hand gently and stared at the fire. Kyona noticed with a small satisfied smirk that he wasn't smoking his pipe.

"I think we need a story!" Bofur suddenly piped up.

"We could always hear about the time my son –"Gloin began.

"No, we have heard that one a million times!" Fíli groaned.

"Have you got any stories, Ky?" Kíli asked, grinning.

She jerked up in surprise.

"Of course, I have plenty of stories… just none I think would interest you." She fiddled with the edge of her cloak.

The other dwarves had started to listen in on their conversation.

"I'm sure we'd find at least one of your stories interesting!" Kíli pleaded, giving her his best puppy face.

"Fine!" She gave in, trying to think of a story.

After a moment her lips curled up in a smile, remembering one of her earliest memories with the orcs.

"How about the time I threatened to call the white warg Daisy?" She smirked, remembering that day with fondness.

"You threatened Azog?" Ori said, his mouth agape.

"Of course, I do it all the time!" She raised a brow and laughed softly.

Kyona now had the undivided attention of every single dwarf now.

"Well, I wanted to name the white warg, which he refused to call anything other than 'warg'. He had blatantly refused to let me name her, but I persisted and threatened him that if he didn't let me name her I would start calling her Daisy… he reluctantly allowed me to name her Azazal." She told them, smirking at their flabbergasted faces.

"I don't know how you're still alive!" Bombur whispered.

"I don't think he does either. I was a very feisty and rebellious child, he had his hands full – well, his _hand _full." She grinned when the dwarves caught what she had said and chuckled.

"Did he ever hurt you if you disobeyed?" Thorin asked from beside her.

She pursed her lips.

"No, I would know the tone in his voice when he was dead serious for me to stop. But he never used physical force, he would punish me, but it was always some sort of mental punishment that made me think about what I was doing and never do it again." She replied thoughtfully.

"Odd, he likes to hurt things." Dori commented.

She snorted.

"He has quite the temper and he is not afraid to kill things, but he never hurts without reason." She explained.

Thorin scoffed.

"I highly doubt that, he kills for the fun of it. It was out of a whim that he swore to wipe out the line of Durin."

She raised an eyebrow.

"What if I told you that his father had been a traitor to the orcs and he was trying to redeem his blood by killing the line of Durin?"

The silence in the air was tense.

"He always complained about you, Thorin. Whenever his hook would give him grief he would start cursing the pathetic dwarf that rendered him crippled. I always reminded him that the dwarf couldn't have been to pathetic, he had cut off _his _arm. It has been a goal of his to personally end you in a most painful way. Sending me to be near you on peaceful terms was one of the hardest things he has ever done." She said.

"He really does care about you, doesn't he?" Fíli said quietly.

"Yes, I believe he does. And he trusts me more than any other living being, but it is foolish for him to trust me, now that I have betrayed him."

-oOo-

They traveled for a day more before they reached Erebor's western slopes. There was grass for their ponies and a small fresh spring where they were able to wash from the road. Kyona had stared into the pool looking at her reflection. She looked healthy, her face was round and colored, and more freckles had splashed across her cheeks from the sun. She sighed; she didn't like looking so… normal. She was losing her lean muscle build and fitting into a more feminine body. Her mind was made up. From that day forward she was running, climbing and lifting rocks.

Day after day the dwarves split up and looked for the hidden door. Each day they came back empty handed. A few of the dwarves (and Bilbo) had taken to going on one of Kyona's intense runs, as they had started to call them. At first Thorin had worried for his betrothed when she had started to work out intensely, but after a talk with a reassuring talk with her had had decided it wouldn't do any harm, even though he had liked her more womanly figure.

But one day they seemed to be in luck.

"C'mon Bilbo! Keep up!" Kyona called back as she ran at a steady pace over the rocky terrain.

Poor Bilbo was huffing and puffing.

"How – do you – do this – every day?!" He puffed out, jogging along.

"Practice." She called back.

He gave a half hearted glare to the girl. The pair was running/hopping on rocks in the valley's southern corner. Suddenly they came upon a large rock that stood like a pillar. Kyona went sprinting around it and came into contact with what seemed to be stone stairs.

"Bilbo! I have found them! Go get Thorin!" She said excitedly.

The poor hobbit had just caught up to her.

"Can't I rest?" He asked.

"No, go get them!" She snapped.

Bilbo wheezed and turned back to the way he had come. Kyona, who couldn't contain her curiosity, went up the weather worn stairs. She lost the path a few times but quickly rediscovered it. She went along ridges and eventually came to a narrower path along the rock. She shimmied her way along it and looked down. There she saw the campsite where the dwarves were busy tearing down the camp and putting the bags onto some dwarves' backs. Cainis was lying calmly among the ponies, completely content. She smiled fondly and continued on her way.

The little ledge eventually came to an odd little grassy alcove which was hidden from the mountainside. She walked around the little bay area and looked for any signs of a door. Kyona saw a bare, flat, stone wall along the mountain. '_That's where the door must be.' _She thought as she went over to examine it. Her scarred hands felt the smooth flawless rock wall. She found nothing that could be a door.

Kyona sighed and looked around. She saw that there was a strange rock sitting near the supposed door, on it were dozens of snails. The oddest thing about the rock was the thrush. It was just sitting there, staring at her with beady little black eyes.

"Bird, will you stop that?" She finally said.

To her utter shock, it started to talk to her.

_"So old Gillion had a daughter."_ It mused.

"What?" Was all she could squeak out, it knew her father's name.

_"I thought Bard was the last of Girion's line." _It said.

"Pardon, Mr. Bird, but I have no idea what you're talking about." Kyona said, utterly confused.

_"You are of an ancient line of Man who may understand thrush speaking." _It explained.

"Fantastic, so I can talk to birds?" She said.

_"Aye, you are very lucky with your gift. Be wise of who you tell."_ It croaked before flying away.

Kyona just stood there, staring the place where the thrush had been.

'_That was… odd.' _She thought.

But then she heard the voices of the dwarves coming around the bend. Thorin came around first.

"Ah, Kyona, there you are!" He said, obviously relieved.

She smiled softly, trying to hide her fright.

"Glad you all made it."

Thorin narrowed his eyes at her.

"Kyona, is something wrong?"

"Nope, everything is perfect!" She gave him a big sunny grin.

Thorin was still suspicious.

"Where are Bofur and Bombur?" She asked with fake cheeriness.

"They stayed down with the ponies. Bombur claimed he was to fat for such small ledges, and Bofur has a kind heart." Fíli explained, looking around the bay area.

Kyona nodded and went to examine the rock which the thrush had been sitting on. She examined the rock closer; she grimaced at the snails that were leaving slime trails across the grey rock. For some reason she felt like this was a very odd occurrence for snails to be congregated at such close quarters.

"Those snails are lovely." Bilbo commented with a hint of sarcasm.

His cheeks were still a bit flushed and his hair was lined with sweat from all the activity he had taken part of this afternoon.

She snorted.

"Aye, such lovely slime trails they're leaving."

"Why do you think they're here?" He asked.

"Who knows, we don't understand snail's motives."

"And we never will!" Bilbo said with a breathy laugh.

After a while they set up their camp ad settled down. Bilbo had been studying the map persistently for the remaining of the afternoon. Kyona simply lay down in the soft green grass and stared up at the rock ceiling above her. It was apparent snails had been on that rock too because there were many shiny trails scrawled out above her. She sighed, wondering when that blasted hidden door would appear.

-oOo-

It didn't open till many weeks later. Chaos came when it did. Bilbo was frantically looking for Thorin, the dwarves were confused, and the thrush was back and talking casually to Kyona.

_"The weather has been nice for this time of year!"_It croaked at her.

It was perched on her knees which were pulled up in front of her. She had been casually looking at the map when it had flown over to the door and started bashing snails against the rock wall. Kyona stared at it as it talked her; the door was being opened in the background.

"I suppose so; I didn't grow up in these parts." Ky replied awkwardly.

She heard a click and looked up. Thorin had put the key in the door. There was now a large gaping hole in the side of the mountain. At five feet high and three abreast it could easily fit a dwarf through.

"Pardon me." Kyona murmured to the thrush, it fluttered to the rock beside the door. She stood up and joined the dwarves who were gawking at the door.

"What's next?" Óin grunted.

"I believe our burglar's time has come." Thorin said, turning towards Bilbo.

Bilbo swallowed and looked quite green.

"Aye, time for our dear hobbit to do his job." Balin affirmed.

"Alright then, who is going with me?" Bilbo asked.

The dwarves all looked uncomfortable and none raised a hand.

"I will." Kyona's clear voice rang out in the bay.

"You will do no such thing!" Thorin snapped.

"You aren't going to let him go alone are you? And here I thought dwarves were loyal to their friends, but now I see that you're all being cowards in the face of danger." Kyona retorted sharply.

Thorin glowered down, all the dwarves looked ashamed.

"I will walk him down the tunnel, but going into the dragon's lair was always the burglar's job." Balin said.

Kyona nodded.

"If my betrothed allows, I will also walk with him."

Thorin glared.

"It is too dangerous for you!"

"And not for you, Thorin Oakenshield, you're the leader of our company, surly you cannot be afraid." She stated.

He gave her a cold glare.

"I will not leave my future queen at the mercy of a dragon." He said coldly.

"I will not let my friend walk alone into danger!" She pointed at Bilbo.

"Balin goes with him!"

"Out of pity!" She spat.

"I cannot risk you getting hurt!" Thorin said.

"You think I am some helpless maid? I am a titled orc general! You think I was given that title out of favoritism? No, I fought and killed up to the top, I had to live with pain constantly, afraid that if I showed weakness I would be killed." She exploded.

There was tense silence.

Then Thorin sighed slowly.

"Fine, but only to the end of the walkway."

Amazed expressions were on all the dwarfs' faces. She had just argued with Thorin Oakenshield, and won! A few of them were taking back their previous assumptions that Kyona would make a terrible queen.

Kyona smirked in victory.

-oOo-

The tunnel was dark and cool, the smell of sulfur hung thick in the air. Kyona walked confidently beside Bilbo, hoping her confident attitude would encourage the small hobbit. He kept fiddling with his pocket and sighing nervously.

"It will be okay, Bilbo," She whispered. "besides, you have your ring!"

Kyona couldn't tell in the darkness if he was smiling or not. He hadn't replied, because in front of them in the gloom was an ominous red glow. The smell of sulfur had intensified. Soon Balin stopped; they could see the small rectangle of a door at the bottom of the straight path.

"This is as far as I will accompany you, laddie. May Mahal guide you," Balin said.

Bilbo's face was pale in the faint red light.

"You'll do fine, you're a fantastic burglar." Kyona encouraged.

"I hope." Bilbo said before slipping the ring on and disappearing into thin air.

-oOo-

Not long too long after that Bilbo came dashing back up into the corridor.

"I've done it!" he said happily, holding up a grand jeweled cup. "More like a grocer than a burglar indeed, we'll hear no more of that!" He added smugly.

"Did you see the dragon?" Kyona asked.

"Yes, he was sound asleep on a bed of gold."

"Come, we must get back, lest Smaug wakes!" Balin shooed them back up the corridor.

To say Kyona was relieved to have fresh air was an understatement. She actually barely noticed Thorin fussing over her.

"Are you alright?" He asked, cupping her cheek in his hand.

"I am perfectly fine, just glad to have fresh air." She said smiling.

The worry in his eyes made her regret their earlier argument.

"Thorin! Mister Baggins is a burglar after all! Look what he has stolen!" Nori lifted the cup and showed it to Thorin.

The dwarves were joyful as they examined the cup. That was, until the dragon shook the mountain at its roots with a thunderous roar.

"Quick, into the tunnel!" Thorin yelled.

"What about Bofur and Bombur and our ponies! They will surely perish!" Ori said.

"Do not worry. Fíli Kíli, get the ropes and haul them up!" Thorin commanded.

Kyona's heart stopped… _Cainis. _

"Thorin, Cainis is down there! We can't just leave her!" She yelled.

"We do not have the time!" he yelled.

Angry tears came to her eyes. She glared at Thorin before turning and retreating into the tunnel.

The brothers were quick to do their uncle's biding. Soon came Bofur and some supplies, then came Bombur who was huffing and puffing the ropes were groaning under his weight. They barely had time to drag the supplies in before the dragon came. They ran deep into the tunnel before collapsing onto the stone floor.

They were all breathing heavily. Kyona tucked her knees up to her chest and tried to stop the tears from falling. Cainis was gone. Nothing escaped the dragon once it had been seen. Thorin came to her side; he sat down and pulled her to his chest. She couldn't hold back her sobs. She cried silently into his chest. The night wore on and Kyona fell into a restless sleep within Thorin's arms.

The next morning dawn filtered through door. Kyona woke to a deep rumbling in Thorin's chest, she smiled, he was snoring softly. She tried to slip from his arms, but his arms were fastened tightly around her. She huffed and snuggled back up to him. Realizing that she wouldn't mind waking up beside him like this more often. It made her feel safe.

Soon all the dwarves had awoken and were trying to figure out what to do.

"Let me make you all a deal," Bilbo started. "I have my ring and I will slip down this very noon and see what his is up to."

Naturally the dwarves accepted this offer eagerly. So, once again Bilbo went snaking down the tunnel.

But this time was different than the last time, because half way through they heard the dragon laughing wickedly. They all feared that their burglar had met a terrible demise. But a few moments later their burglar came up and out of the tunnel followed by a ball of flame. The fire (thankfully) didn't reach them, but their poor hobbit was singed. They doctored his burns and began to ask him questions.

Kyona noticed the thrush came and fluttered to the rock by the door. She also noticed that the rock was scorched and the snails were missing. Bilbo cast a nervous glance in its direction.

"I don't like the look of that blasted bird! It looks as if it knows too much!" Bilbo said.

"Let him be." Thorin said. "That is a very old bird by the looks of it, he may be the last of the magical race that used to inhabit these parts. The thrushes used to relay messages from Erebor to Dale, the king of that city was able to understand them." Thorin explained.

Kyona felt the thrushes' beady little eyes watching her; she wanted to blurt out what she had learned earlier. But the thrushes warning rang clear in her mind.

"I fear he will have much news to take to Lake Town." Bilbo said.

The dwarves crowded around him to hear his tale.

"I fear he has guessed too much, I believe his next move will be to attack Lake Town." The hobbit ended.

"Well, it cannot be helped. I have heard it is very difficult to speak with a dragon. I think you have done very well!" Balin tried to reassure him.

They then launched into the histories of dragon slaying techniques. They talked and the thrush listened until the first stars peeped out. Then he took to his wings and flew silently away. As the night wore on Bilbo got more and more anxious.

"We're not safe here, I fear Smaug will be attacking very soon!" He said, something in his voice made the dwarves wary.

They went inside of the tunnel and continued to talk of gold and precious jewels. Until Bilbo's voice rang out.

"Please I am begging you! I feel it in my marrow that the dragon will be coming soon! Shut the door!"

Thorin huffed and went to the door; he kicked the rock that kept the door in place. Then a few of the dwarves heaved on it and the door swung shut with a clang. It was not a moment too soon. For what seemed a battering ram of force erupted on the side of the mountain. The dwarves tried not to think of what would have become of them if they had still been on the mountain side.

-oOo-

They did not know how much time had passed as they sat in the dark tunnel. They barely dared move, let alone speak. They did not eat much either. But finally it was Bilbo's idea to go down into the dragon's lair. None of the dwarves wanted to go down, but they did give Bilbo a torch and sent him off into the dark hall. They watched as their burglar walked deeper and deeper into Erebor's depths.

They were very alarmed when they heard him cry out; they feared Smaug had caught him. But when he kept squeaking they realized he was alright. They lit more torches and began their way into the dark.

Kyona was amazed at all the gold and treasure Erebor contained. Her breath was taken away whenever the torch light landed on a new pile of treasure. Thorin seemed lighthearted and content. He knelt down and picked up a circlet tiara then walked over to Kyona.

She gasped; it was silver, wrought with designs of Mithril, opals, amethysts, and diamonds created a beautiful pattern.

"This looks fit for a queen." He smiled.

"Thorin, I-I can't wear this! I'll probably break it!" She said.

"Nonsense, this crown was forged by dwarves! It will take a great deal to break it." He put it onto her head.

Thorin stood back and smiled, she looked like a queen.

"My queen." He whispered.

She smiled shyly at him.

"You think I will be a good queen?" She asked.

"My love, you already are." He smiled and kissed her forehead.


	19. News of a Darker Nature

**Chapter Nineteen**

** News of a Darker Nature**

* * *

Karri walked along with a small group of gloomy refugees. Their home had been destroyed by Smaug and her people were now homeless and wandering through the countryside. The group was in a particularly thick area of dead trees. The underbrush was thick and coarse, they couldn't cut through it. It was just her and a group of women and children. They had gone off in search of food for their families. And Karri couldn't shake the feeling like they were being watched.

Her doe brown eyes searched the area for any sort of food. She saw a small bit of red berries in the gray underbrush. She rushed over and examined them, looking to see if they were edible. Unfortunately, they were poisonous. Karri sighed and stood up, her eyes looking into the forest. She didn't know what she was looking for, just something that could help them. The familiar twinge of anger flared up in her chest. Anger at the dwarves, they had trusted them, _she _had trusted them! Fíli's bright smile flashed through her head. She really did like him, but after this, he and his kin had lost her respect. Bard had warned them against waking the beast, but they hadn't listened.

Karri sighed and was about to turn away when a barely audible growl came from the trees. Her brown eyes widened in fear when she saw the outline of a warg and an orc. Karri let out a piercing scream before the orc grabbed her. Other wargs and orcs came bursting into the clearing. The screams of woman and children filled the air. Before Karri slipped into unconsciousness she realized that the orcs weren't killing them. They were capturing them. The last thing she saw was a pale orc come out of the trees. He was looking for something… or _someone._

-oOo-

Kyona sighed as she leaned out over the desolated landscape. It had almost been two weeks since the dwarves had 'retaken' Erebor. They were housed in a grand hall that opened up and looked out over the landscape. The chilly winter air tugged at her long hair, making it billow around her. Thorin had been disappearing for long stretches of time, and when he came back he was dark and moody. Not exactly the type of person she wanted to be around.

The bitter wind was making her skin numb. She sighed and rubbed her arms as she walked back into the stone halls of Erebor. The dwarves were scattered around, cleaning and repairing the many treasures that lay within the mountain. She saw Balin with his reading glass looking over a piece of paper.

"Balin." She acknowledged.

The white haired dwarf looked up at her and smiled.

"Ahh, Kyona lass, good to see ya."

"The winter has set in." She commented.

"Aye, good thing we have the mountain to protect us." Balin looked around at the vast ceilings.

"Have you seen Thorin?"

Balin's expression darkened.

"Last I knew he was in the treasury, he's been in there a lot of late."

She sighed.

"Aye, thank you Balin." Kyona nodded her thanks and made her way towards the treasury.

Balin watched her go. The circlet on her head gave her the appearance of a queen. She had changed so much over the past months; her sly mannerisms had been replaced with noble loyalty. She walked with her head held high and the grace of an elf. The old dwarf was proud to say he trusted her with his life, with the lives of every dwarf who would live in Erebor. He smiled softly; she would do the kingdom well.

Kyona walked through the straight stone corridors. Over the past two weeks she had taken to memorizing the pathways. She was soon at the bent dislodged doors of the royal treasury. The vast amount of treasure always took her breath away; the dwarves had made so many fine things. She descended down the cracked stairs into the mountains of treasure. Her storm cloud eyes looked for her betrothed. It took her a while to find him. But after a while she did. He was sitting on a golden chair surrounded by treasure, his expression was dark and his eyes gleamed with a light that Kyona wished she could not have seen.

"Thorin?" She called softly.

He looked up, the darkness shrouding him and the light in eyes diminished.

"Kyona, my queen." He said, standing and embracing her.

"I have missed you." She said, wrapping her arms around him.

"So have I." He rumbled.

"What have you been doing down here?" She asked, pulling away and brushing a stray lock of hair away from his face.

"Admiring the treasure." He said, almost defensive.

Kyona's brow raised.

"For a week? Honestly Thorin, its just treasure!"

Thorin's dark expression returned.

"It is not 'just treasure' Kyona," he pulled away from her. "it is the wealth and power of my people! I should not expect you to understand, you are human."

Kyona felt hurt by his comment, she was to be his queen. Thorin had never talked to her like that! Well, after they had confessed love.

"But I look for a treasure worth more than all the gold in the world, the Arkenstone." Thorin said, turning to her.

There it was, the gleam in his eye, the gleam of obsession. She had seen it in Azog's eye before she left, she hated it. It would make him rash and illogical and forget what was important.

"Thorin, are you alright?" She asked, with a tremor in her voice.

"Of course I am! We have reclaimed Erebor, Smaug is gone, and I have you." Something in Thorin's voice wasn't right, it wasn't Thorin.

He pulled her close to him and kissed her deeply. This wasn't like the other kisses they had shared; it was deeper and needier. She returned the kiss with much less fire than Thorin was giving her. She felt the need to pull away. She was about to when the sound of hurried footsteps. Thorin pulled away, Kyona turned and began to walk quickly away. But she almost ran into a very nervous looking Kíli.

"Uncle, we have some news that you won't like." He said.

Thorin glared at his sister's son before striding towards the large doors. Kíli gave Kyona an apologetic look before hurrying away, Kyona followed in suit.

They soon arrived into the grand open hall. The rest of the company was standing around a very old looking raven bird.

'_Oh boy, more birds.' _Kyona thought sarcastically.

"Hail Thorin Oakenshield, I am Roac son of Crac." it croaked in common tongue.

"What news do you bear?" Thorin asked.

"Grave news indeed, armies of men and elves begin their march towards the mountain. They wish for the treasure. Smaug has been slain by Bard the Bowman."

Kyona's head jerked towards the bird, as cries of celebration came from the dwarves.

"Does Bard live?" She asked worriedly.

"Aye, young lady, he has become king of the man of Lake Town." It answered.

She went silent, _her brother was king?_

"Send word to my kin in the Iron Hills, my cousin Dain will send help." Thorin commanded.

"As you wish, but I fear that is not all that troubles me. I was attacked by a crow on my journey here. It said it had news from orcs to Thorin Oakenshield. These words trouble me; I do not know what they mean." The raven cleared its throat.

"Send Raven to us, we have captured innocent hostages. If you do not give her to us alive by tomorrow's sunset we will kill them. Karri is among them."

An anguished cry came from Fíli.

Kyona stared at the ground; she knew exactly what they meant. Azog had captured innocent lives in exchange for her. She closed her eyes; Azog knew who Karri was and how important she was to Fíli. Kyona could only guess how he had figured it out.

"He wants me." Kyona said coldly.

Fifteen pairs of eyes looked at her.

"W-what do ya mean lass?!" Bofur stuttered.

"Raven, that is the name I was called by the orcs."

Realization hit the dwarves. Yells of protest rang out in the stone halls. Only Kyona and Fíli stood quiet. Even Bilbo protested this development. Kyona's grey eyes locked with Fíli's green ones, a silent understanding passed between.

"Enough!" She cried out.

They all stopped.

"He has the lives of many innocent people, if I return they will be spared!"

"I will not allow it!" Thorin yelled.

"And I will not stand by idly and let innocents die!" She yelled back.

Thorn sent her a withering glare.

"You cannot return to him." Thorin growled.

"He still believes me to be on his side, if I persuade him to –"

"You think you can reason with an orc?!" Thorn scoffed.

She scowled.

"I have done many times! This time will be no different!"

"What if he knows you have betrayed him? What do you think he will do?"

"He will not kill me." She said firmly.

Thorin gave a short bark of laughter.

"We're done arguing, you will not leave Erebor." He put a hand up to silence her from further discourse.

"Let us fortify the main gate; we mustn't be ill prepared for our enemies." Thorin commanded as he walked swiftly from the area.

The other dwarves followed him, all except Fíli.

Kyona stood glaring at the ground.

"Ky, please, you have to save her!" Fíli choked out.

She looked up, seeing the distress in the normally happy young dwarf's eyes made Kyona's heart twist. And from that moment on it was settled.

She was going back to the orcs.

-oOo-

When Karri woke she was tied up and lying beside one of her friends, Juliana.

"Psst, Kar, wake up!" Her friend was saying frantically.

"W-what?" Karri mumbled.

"We've been taken by orcs!" She sobbed out.

That woke Karri up.

"Where are we?"

"I don't know! They knocked some of us out and made others carry us!"

Karri cringed at the thought of someone else carrying her.

"They've been pulling some of us out at random." Juliana was trembling.

Karri's eyes narrowed, why would they be doing that?

Just then an orc came walking by them. It said something its guttural language and grabbed the girls by the scruffs of their necks. They cried in pain, it silenced them both with a fierce kick. It drug them along till they came to a stop. Karri barley dared to look up. She immediately regretted it when she did. In front of them was the pale orc. He leaned casually against a large rock; he seemed to be sharpening the grotesque hook that was sticking out of his right arm. He looked bored; the giant white warg at his feet seemed the same mood as its master.

He muttered something in the dark language before flicking his eyes at them. Karri thought she had been terrified before, it was nothing compared to the cold blue stare of the pale orc.

"Tell me, was there a girl with the dwarves that came through your town?" He said in common, it didn't sound natural to him.

Karri's heart stopped and all color drained from her face. _Kyona. Why was he asking about Kyona?!_

The pale orc was watching them intently; a twisted grin came to his face when he saw Karri's reaction. He walked up to them, he stooped and grabbed Karri by her neck and held her in the air.

"Where is she?" He asked.

"With – the – dwarves!" Karri gasped out.

"Is she alright?" He asked.

"I-I don't – know! Mountain – dragon!" Karri was seeing stars now.

But just as she thought she was going to see no more the grip on her neck disappeared and she dropped painfully to the ground. Karri lay there, gasping for air. She heard the pale giant spit something in his language; she could only guess it was testament to her weakness.

Karri flicked her eyes towards the orc, his back was turned facing the mountain.

"We haven't heard from the dwarves since the dragon attacked." Karri said.

"You knew these dwarves well?" He asked, his scarred pale back still turned.

Karri didn't know what to say, she had a feeling he could tell if she was lying, but yet, she feared what would happen if she told the truth. But unfortunately she wasn't the one who answered.

"Yes! She does!" Juliana cried out.

'_Traitor.' _Karri thought with venom as she glared at the black haired girl.

The pale orc turned to them, a look of amusement on his face.

"Is that so?"

"Yes that dwarvish prince took quite a fancy to her!"

Karri sent the meanest glare she could (which wasn't very mean) at Juliana. The poor girl had the look of a caged wild animal trying to do whatever it could to survive. Karri closed her eyes when she saw the look on the pale orc's face.

But before Juliana could utter another word the orc spat something to the orc who had captured them. A scream caught in Karri's throat when the orc pulled a knife and slit Juliana's throat. The girl's blood spilt and soaked into Karri's clothes. Tears poured out of Karri's brown eyes.

He knelt down to Karri and whispered.

"You will be of use to me if those dwarves still live."

The tears came harder.

-oOo-

Azog was rather pleased to find that he had a bargaining chip against the dwarves… that is if the still lived. The thought of Raven being dead made a cold feeling come to his gut.

**"Bring me a crow!"** He spat to one of his underlings.

Soon a sly looking crow flew up to him. Crows were often used by orcs to send long distance messages.

**"Go to the mountain, see if the dwarves live. If they do make sure a raven hears my message."**

He turned to the girl on the ground; she was lying in her friend's blood.

"What are you called?" He asked her.

She didn't answer.

"Answer me, filth!" He spat.

"Karri." Her voice was barely a whisper.

He turned back to the crow.

**"Tell them to send Raven to us, we have captured innocent hostages. If you do not give her to us alive by tomorrow's sunset we will kill them. Karri is among them." **He growled at the crow.

It cawed and took off, flying towards the mountain.

-oOo-

Kyona stared at the mirror in front of her. She was thin and muscled, just as she'd been when she left the orcs. But it wasn't convincing. She looked normal, not like she had been the dwarves' prisoner. Things had to change. She remembered when she was rolled down the hill onto the road. That would need to happen again. She narrowed her eyes, that wasn't severe enough. Kyona would need to do something that would be convincing, something that would be very offensive to a dwarf… and Azog.

The lean girl looked deeper into the mirror, then, as if someone had smacked her, the idea hit her.

She would cut her hair.

It would upset Azog and it would be considered a punishment in dwarven culture. She knew how much dwarves valued hair. So, Kyona unsheathed Fang and started to cut her dark brown locks. Bit by bit she sliced off the hair until there was nothing but wavy strands around her face and the back of her neck. Her appearance reminded her of one of the young boys in Lake Town.

It felt very strange not to have her long hair swishing around her with every movement. But she liked it. Kyona could help but smirk at the spark of rebellion that she felt. It would make both Thorin and Azog equally angry. She ran her scarred fingers through her cropped hair, but she stopped when her fingers touched the small braid at the base of her neck. She hadn't cut it, which would cause problems if she didn't get rid of it somehow. But that didn't matter right now, so she tucked the braid into the back of her shirt where it was out of sight.

Kyona sighed; it looked like she would have to put the circlet away as well. The girl put the circlet in the middle of her cut hair. Now, it was time to leave a letter. She would deal with beating herself up later. But the only problem was she couldn't write very well. It had taken a lot of brain power for her to write 'Erebor' on the stone. Writing an entire note would be almost impossible. She would need someone to write for her. The only trust worthy dwarf she could think of was Fíli.

Kyona flicked her hood up and went in search of the blonde dwarf. She found him – alone – sitting on a small balcony. She could tell he had been crying. He was sitting on a stone bench overlooking the western sky.

"Fíli, I need your help." She said from the doorway.

He turned to her.

"Help with what? Will it save Karri?"

"Yes and no, I need your help to write a note to Thorin." She said, coming to sit with him on the stone bench.

"A letter?" He asked.

"Yes, I can't write well." She murmured.

"Alright."

Fíli watched her, closely.

"Kyona, did you cut your hair?" He asked.

She swallowed hard.

"A little."

"May I see?"

She flicked her hood down. A gasp came from Fíli's lips.

"A little?! You cut it all off!"

"I needed to make it look worse than it is. If I don't look rough than Azog will never believe me." She explained.

Realization came on his face.

"I see, so about that letter."

-oOo-

The morning dawned and Thorin roused from a restless slumber. He put on his golden armor, the armies would be here soon and they still had much to do on the main gate. He got up and walked to the room Kyona had been staying in. It wasn't a large grand room, more of a closet in his opinion. He opened the door and was about to call her name when he noticed something was wrong. His steel blue eyes looked around the dark room. He quickly lit a torch. It took all his will power not to gasp.

In front of him was a pile of hair – Kyona's hair, with her circlet lying on top, and in the middle was a piece of paper. He rushed over and picked it up, reading it hastily.

_Thorin,_

_I am sorry it had to be this way. I cannot let innocent people die when I can save their lives. Please, do not be angry. I did this for the good of many. The hair is explainable, I cut it to look convincing, Azog would never believe me otherwise. It'll grow back._

_Thorin I love you, I always have and always will. Don't worry about my loyalty, I will always be true to you._

_~Kyona_

So, she had deliberately disobeyed him. Thorin could not resist the gold any longer. With the only thing worth more to him than treasure gone… there was nothing to hold him back. He let his mind slip into the power of a dragon's hoard.


	20. Calm Before the Storm

**Chapter Twenty**

**Calm Before the Storm**

* * *

Kyona took a deep breath. Everything had come to this moment. She had used the thrush to speak to a crow which got a message to Azog. The message told him (in a rather rudely worded way) that she would be left in a ravine miles away from Erebor two hour before dawn. Ky truly hoped that it seemed convincing enough. In preparation she had left as soon as Fíli left the letter in her room. She hiked to the large rugged ravine; it was six miles away from Erebor, far enough away that the dwarves wouldn't witness the exchange.

The thrush had found her as soon as she had slipped unnoticed out of Erebor; she had sent it away with the message. The terrain was easy enough to cross; Kyona just had to look out for rocks in the dark. The air was cold and biting, she hugged her black cloak closer around her body. After a few hours, cold sweat was gathered on her body, she had picked up the pace in fear that they would be there already. She was beginning to get annoyed when the ground opened up in a steep hill and spilled out into the ravine.

She sighed; she knew she would need to throw herself off. With an over dramatic huff she let herself roll. Kyona was prepared for pain, but she didn't expect it to hurt _that_ bad. Several large rocks had hit her head, stomach and her old puncture wound. The scar of the old wound was burning like fire. She also hadn't anticipated that it was two times longer and bigger than the hill she had rolled down in the Misty Mountains.

Once on the stony ground Kyona was seeing stars, the rock had hit her head pretty hard and there was blood trickling down into her eye. Her whole body ached and burned. Before she passed she had enough sense to crawl into the middle of the ravine. There she closed her eyes and slipped into unconsciousness.

-oOo-

Azog was a whirlwind of anger; he had already killed two goblins for no reason. They had Raven. The dwarves had Raven, he was so angry at them. The way they spoke of her was as if she was dirt beneath their feet. Although news that she still lived had relieved him, he was still fuming. He wanted to make sure she was not too injured to fight. Unbeknownst to the dwarves a vast army of orcs and goblins was coming from mount Gundabad. Azog already had a large force at his command. But with this large addition to the army the orcs would be almost unstoppable.

He felt it was time, he shouted for Azazal who felt her master's temper and came with no hesitation. Azog roared for another orc to accompany him, the poor orc looked terrified. The wargs rode fast to the ravine only stopping to sniff the air for danger. Azog heard Azazal warble softly, a sound he had only ever heard her use for Raven. His eyes searched the ravine, looking for the girl. He saw her, crumpled and beaten, lying in the center of the ravine. More rage coursed through his veins. _How dare they do this to her? _

He spurred Azazal to her side. Raven had a nasty gash on her forehead and a few scrapes and bruises dotted on her face. He knelt to her side; his large pale hand went to where her long hair should have been… except her hair was cropped ridiculously short.

Those dwarves were going to die slow, painful deaths.

Azog tried to control his rage as he picked her up and carried her to Azazal. The warg gurgled in recognition at the unconscious girl. He realized how light the girl was, she had probably not eaten well as the dwarf's prisoner. The pale orc adjusted her in his arm, making sure the hook wasn't hurting her. She groaned softly and shifted, her eyes opened. They were blurry and disoriented. She looked up at him.

**"Azog?"** Her voice was raspy.

**"Yes child." **He answered.

She gave the faintest of smiles before passing out again, her head lolling into his chest. He kicked Azazal into a fast run. They made it to the orc encampment by dawn; there was preparation for war all around them. Orcs sharpened vast amounts of cruel looking weapons, wargs were being fed and saddled, and orcs being fitted with armor. Azog rode through the camp to where the orc leaders were at. There he swung down and set her inside of a warg skin tent, she was limp and her bruises were becoming more and more prominent.

Azog summoned a 'healer' to her side.

**"There isn't much I can do, master." **He said to Azog.

**"Give her something that will regain her strength!" **Azog snarled before cuffing the orc around the head.

It squawked and hurried out of the tent. Azog growled under his breath and turned towards the lifeless looking girl. He knelt and ran his fingers through her short hair; it was strange looking on her, but yet, it fit her. Azog stood up and strode out of the tent; he was going to kill the dwarves, all of them, especially Oakenshield.

He saw a circle of three other large vicious looking orcs. They were his commanders, they were the only orcs who were not utterly terrified of him, but they respected him.

**"Azog, the army from Gundabad will arrive in two days time."** said Gorg, the first orc.

**"Very well, we will be ready to attack the mountain when they arrive." **Azog nodded, coming to stand with them.

**"Has something happened?"**asked Vulb, the smallest of the trio.

**"Raven has returned. The dwarves have not treated her well."**

**"Figures, dwarves are mindless beasts." **Drund, the largest of the three, snorted.

**"You still trust a human girl?" **Gorg asked, doubt in his eyes.

Azog flicked his pale blue orbs to the orc.

**"Yes, and it would be wise if you would as well. She has more sense than the three of you combined!" **Azog said menacing tone.

The three were silent.

**"What if she has betrayed you?" **Vulb pointed out.

**"Raven would never betray me, I assure you of that."**

-oOo-

Kyona's grey eyes opened slowly, they adjusted to the faint light. She saw (and smelled) that she was in an orc encampment, in a tent. She remembered vaguely waking up and seeing Azog for a brief moment. But she couldn't be sure, her head was pounding and her entire body ached and burned. She was about to stand up when a hunched over orc came into the tent, holding a drinking skin and a cloth.

**"Drink." **He gave her the skin, she sniffed it and almost gagged, it was orc draught.

She knew she had to drink it, so, bracing herself for the vile liquid she drank the dark strong draught. It burned her throat and woke her up, she felt strength in her limbs and her mind cleared. It was nasty but very convenient stuff! She stood but the orc stopped her.

**"Your head needs cleaning."** He said.

Kyona glared at him then sat back down and let the orc clean her wound. The orc was rather rough and she wasn't sure whether or not the cloth did more harm than good. Finally after what seemed a lifetime, he was done. She was up on her feet and out of the tent before he could object. Ky felt the feel of Fang on her waist underneath the black cloak she wore.

Her grey eyes looked for Azog's white form. She saw him not to far off standing with the other commanders. Kyona squared her shoulders and set her jaw, she was raised to intimidate and radiate authority. She held her head up and walked with prowess.

One of the orcs saw her coming, he was the mid size of the monstrous group, he had intelligence and physical strength – both attributes that were very prized. He looked to Azog and murmured something. Azog turned to meet her.

**"Raven, I see you have been tended to." **He mused.

**"Aye." **She replied.

Azog gave her a miniscule look of confusion; she realized she had never used 'aye' before being with the dwarves.

**"We have an army coming from Gundabad."** One orc said, he was the smallest of the group, but he was sly and cunning.

It took a lot of effort for Kyona to maintain her composure. An army of orcs was coming from Gundabad. And the dwarves knew nothing of it.

**"Do you have any information on the dwarves?" **the biggest asked.

Kyona's looked down; trying to recall anything she could falsely tell the orcs.

**"The mountain is strongly protected; you won't be able to breach it." **She said.

This was partially true, but they didn't need to know that if they were to attack now the dwarves would stand no chance.

**"What of Oakenshield?" **Azog asked.

The gleam in Thorin's eye came to Kyona's mind; something was wrong with him, or well, wrong with his mind.

**"The gold plagues his mind; he has been very cruel lately."** Kyona said, gesturing to her face.

She saw the cold fury in Azog's eyes. Now that she had specifically singled out Thorin as her 'torturer' it had pushed him over the edge. Kyona bit her tongue in order to keep from smiling in rebellion; her hair had no doubt angered him further.

**"We could use this to our advantage!" **the sly orc said. **"If he isn't thinking properly we could lure him out and end him!"**

**"Don't think he isn't thinking properly. If anything it has sharpened his mind and made him more cunning."** Kyona warned. 

**"You seem to know these dwarves well." **The mid size one said, he had been watching her the whole time.

**"Of course I do, I watched them, learned their habits, know their small weaknesses."** Kyona said with an eye roll.

**"You have done well." **Azog acknowledged.

She nodded her head, looking at the busyness around the camp, her eyes trailed over to a where a wooden corral. What she saw chilled her to the bone. Inside there were human woman and children, tied up, beaten, and bloody. She felt the color drain from her face. She had forgotten why she had come, now it all came slamming down on her like a load of bricks.

**"Raven?"** It was Azog.

She snapped her head back.

**"Yes."**

**"We're done now, go to your troops." **Azog told the three. They nodded and left the area.

**"You need to let the woman and children go." **Kyona said coldly.

She heard a snort of laughter.

**"Let them go? No, they don't deserve it. I intend to let the dwarves suffer for what they have done to you."**

**"Let them go." **Kyona said more firmly, turning to look him in the eye.

Azog cocked his head and looked at her.

**"You care for them?" **He asked.

**"They do not deserve to die."**

**"They're dirt compared to us!" **Azog spat.

**"They were the ones who treated me kindly! Not the dwarves!" **She said.

Azog was silent for a moment.

**"I will let the woman and children go, but the dwarf's whore will be killed." **Azog snapped, before turning away and walking towards a small gnarled tree.

And at its base was a dirty, tied up girl. Karri.

Kyona closed her eyes.

**"Please, let Karri go." **Kyona said, she hadn't meant for her voice to crack in emotion.

Azog stopped in his tracks, and then her turned around to face her.

**"Why should you care about the filth?" **

_'Forgive me Mahal.' _Kyona prayed, knowing full well what she was about to say was a complete lie.

**"Because she is my sister."**

Azog stood there and stared at her for a moment.

**"That is impossible. Your family was killed."**

**"No, she was in the forest when you attacked."**

The pale orc narrowed his eyes.

**"For your sake I will not kill her. But she will never be able to forget what she has been through."** The coldness in his voice make Kyona shiver in fear.

Azog roughly picked Karri up by the front of her shirt and slammed her against the tree. She gave a small cry of pain through the dirty cloth tied around her mouth. Her brown eyes were wide with fear; she looked passed Azog's large form and saw Kyona. Their eyes locked and Kyona mouthed: _'I'm sorry.'_

Whatever Kyona thought Azog was going to do it wasn't as cruel as what he had in mind. With his hook he began to slowly rake across her forehead. Kyona was letting silent tears pour down her cheeks.

He was carving his name into her skin.

It was one of the most horrible things Kyona had ever seen. Karri was crying in pain and bloody rivers were coming from the wound. She looked tortured, which, she was. After what seemed like a life time he let her fall to the ground.

"Go to Erebor and tell your prince to be ready, because I will hold nothing back, they have hurt my daughter." Azog hissed.

-oOo-

Bofur was on watch at the old guard tower when he saw the lone orc rider come to the edge of the mountain. The orc threw something (which looked suspiciously like a person) onto the ground. Immediately after that the orc and warg bolted away. Bofur ran through the halls and left through one of the recently cleared doors out to the side of the mountain. The armies of men and elves were facing the front gates but the other sides of the mountain were vacant.

He was huffing and puffing when he got to where the orc had dropped the person. Bofur gasped when he saw who it was.

It was Karri.

Her face was completely bloody from some very deep scratches on her forehead. The hat wearing dwarf picked the girl up gingerly and carried her into Erebor. There he called for some of the others to go get Óin and Fíli.

He laid the girl down on a cot and cut the bonds binding her hands and feet. They were bruised and bloody. She had had a rough go. Bofur then heard a cry of horror and joy.

"Karri!" It was Fíli.

He ran to her side.

"What happened?" he asked frantically.

"I saw an orc and a warg come and throw her down out by the guard tower. It was gone before I could get out there." Bofur retold.

"Kyona." Fíli breathed.

Just then a very angry Thorin Oakenshield came storming into the room. He was in his golden battle armor which made him look very imposing.

"Where is Kyona?" He thundered.

"She isn't here." Bofur answered.

Thorin muttered a few dwarvish curses.

"Get her cleaned up. We need to ask her some questions. Fíli let Óin do his job!" Thorin barked before storming back out of the room.

The other members of the company backed away, their king was particularly angry from their burglar's betrayal with the Arkenstone earlier that day. Fíli stroked her hand one last time before leaving. Óin set to work cleaning the girl's face and wounds. What he discovered was not pleasant. He finished cleaning her before he called Thorin and Fíli to him. Óin had a bandage covering Karri's forehead.

"Is she alright? Is something wrong?" Fíli asked.

"Aye, she'll be fine. But I've found something that you won't like." Óin said gravely.

The old slightly deaf healer pulled the bandage away from her forehead. Fíli gasped and Thorin cursed. They were not scratches on her forehead… they were letters.

"That scum will pay for what he did to her!" Fíli yelled.

The commotion woke Karri. Her eyes were wide and fearful, she was looking for danger. But then she saw Fíli.

"Fíli?" She asked.

"Karri!" He smiled and embraced her.

Her shoulders started shaking in sobs. Fíli tried to comfort her.

"H-he was so horrible Fíli!" She cried. "He cut my forehead and gave me no food. He killed Julie!" She broke out into another wave of sobs.

Thorin watched with a stoic expression.

"Was Kyona there?" He asked calmly.

She sniffled, and then her eyes grew serious.

"Yes, she was. I have never anything like it, she talked like them, she argued with the pale orc! She saved my life." Karri's eyes grew misty once more at the thought of her friend.

"Was she alright?"

"Other than a nasty bruise and cut on her forehead she seemed fine."

Thorn breathed a sigh of relief.

"The pale orc asked me to say something." Karri said quietly.

"Well?" Óin asked.

"He wanted me to tell you to be ready. Because he will hold nothing back, he said you hurt his daughter."

The three dwarves in the room grew solemn.

"This is grave news indeed." Thorin murmured.

"They seemed to be getting ready to fight. I-I couldn't tell how many there were but there was quite a few."

"Thank you Karri, rest now and heal from your wounds." Thorin told her before waving Fíli to follow him.

The two royals walked into the main hall where the other dwarves were assembled.

"My friends, it has been decided, we will do battle with orcs, men, and elves to protect what is rightfully ours!" Thorin announced.

The dwarves cheered, but on the inside they were afraid. Afraid for what was to come, for the calm before the storm had set in. The storm was about to break.


	21. In the Shadow of the Mountain

**Chapter Twenty One**

**In the Shadow of the Mountain**

* * *

_Dread._

That was the only thing Kyona felt. The army from Gundabad had arrived and everything was chaos. Orcs and wargs ran, shouted, and shoved their way through the camp, preparing for the oncoming battle. She was dressed in a warg leather cuirass and armor, the leather was strong and flexible and would protect her from the sharp of a passing blade. Around her waist was the warg skin she had been given as a child, Fang and another wicked looking orc blade on her side. Her jaw was set in determination and dread, her betrothal braid was tucked away down the back of her cuirass.

It would all end today. The fate of these races would be decided under the shadow of the Lonely Mountain. Azog suspected nothing of her… that she knew of. He seemed to think things were back to normal. She had assumed her place as his head advisor (to the distaste of the other orc commanders). Azog was quite calm amidst the chaos, he had on components of black armor made out of a dark metal that Kyona did not know the name of_. 'Thorin would know what it is called.' _Kyona thought to herself. Thinking about her beloved made her chest contract painfully.

**"Raven," **Azog rumbled from behind her.

He had come into the tent unannounced to her.

**"What is it you need?" **She replied.

**"How did you know she was your sister? You look nothing alike." **He asked. The tone in his voice was borderline hostile.

Kyona could only assume that he was talking about Karri. A lump rose in her throat.

**"She recognized me in Lake Town."**

**"What proof does she have of your relation?"**

**"A trinket our mother used to wear."**

Kyona didn't like where this conversation was going.

Azog's eyes narrowed.

**"How can I believe you?"**

Kyona scoffed to cover her anxiety.

**"I have told you this before; you have trusted me since I was barely up to your knee! Why would I betray you?"**

**"Because of Oakenshield, if he didn't care about you he would have killed you as soon as he knew your identity!" **Azog hissed. **"You know those dwarves too well, you know _him_ too well."**

Kyona was at a loss for words, of all the times for him to confront her it had to be now?

**"Honestly, did you see how they treated me? Why would I swear allegiance to the ones who hurt me?" **She laughed it away, but on the inside she was terrified.

Azog seemed barely content with her answer.

**"I trust you Raven, but the others do not believe your story. They have pointed out the flaws that I did not see."**

Kyona took a deep shuddering breath and pulled Fang from its sheath. She knew this was going to complicate things. But yet it would also secure Azog's trust for her.

**"You have my blood swear to you." **She saidas she sliced herhand, blood dripped from her clenched palm.

Azog studied her for a moment before wordlessly slicing his own hand with his hook and took her hand, their blood smearing together.

**"You're fully sworn to me," **Kyona's heart pounded.** "I give you my word never to harm you." ** He added softly.

She couldn't help but feel small and brittle compared to his giant form, his hand swallowed hers whole. But yet she felt powerful, she had Azog the Defiler's complete, utter trust. A small seed in her heart felt outright horrible, she was going to betray the one she had dared called father. But the rest of her heart was committed to Thorin; she would not betray her betrothed.

Her musings were stopped when his hand came to her cheek. She felt cold blood smearing on her somewhat freckled cheek. She knew it was the thick, black blood of an orc now decorating her cheek. Azog moved his hand after a moment.

**"I forget how delicate you are, I could snap you in two." **

That information made her stomach twist slightly. _How was she going to keep Thorin safe from him?_

**"But you won't." **She craned her neck up to look him in the eye.

**"Correct." **He said as he reached over to a bowl sitting on a roughly made table.

He dipped his fingers into the contents; it was thick blue war paint. His paint covered fingers moved to her face, he dragged them along her cheeks and down her neck. The paint was cold and coarse against her skin. It was custom for a second in command and his superior to do one another's war paint. She reached over and laid her hand into the paint, covering the entire surface of her fingers and palm with blue. She reached up and laid it flat against his left breast, right over his heart. _'What a lovely target!' _She mused. She finished by tracing the scars across his chest in the coarse paint. Kyona nodded and wiped the remaining blue paint onto the warg skin around her waist.

**"It is good to have you on my side, Raven."** He said before turning and leaving the tent.

She came out soon after him, breathing as deep as she could in the foul air. It was time for her to gain a new warg mount, since Cainis had… passed on. The thought made tears prick her eyes. But she swallowed the emotion and made her way towards the warg corrals. Azazal was lying by the gate, glaring at everything that passed. Kyona rolled her eyes, such a snobby warg. When the white canine saw her she warbled in greeting, the girl patted the warg's head.

What she had not expected was the white warg to get up and nudge her in the other direction.

**"W-what are you doing?" **She asked the white warg. Azazal just nuzzled her in the other direction.

Kyona walked with the warg for a little ways till they came to a formation of boulders, two of the giant rocks came together and created a sort of cave. Azazal stopped and gave the barest nod, Ky's eyes narrowed as she looked in the faint light. There was a warg lying against the stone, it grumbled and opened its eyes. Its tan fur was missing and burn scars marred in its place. There was rippled scar running diagonally across its face.

**"Cainis!" **Kyona cried in delight as she flew to the warg's side and wrapped her arms around her neck.

The warg rumbled in acknowledgement.

**"I thought you dead…" **She murmured into the warg's fur.

Cainis heaved a sigh into her master; the warg had missed her mistress.

**"Come Cainis, we fight today." **Kyona said with remorse while standing and beckoning to her.

Kyona turned to see that Azazal was gone, she shrugged, the white warg probably had better things to do. Cainis plodded along behind her as they made their way towards the armory. Kyona was not going to risk her warg's life in battle. The orc-raised woman opened the tent flap with a snap and strode in. The big orc who made the armor gave a respectful nod towards her.

**"Get my warg armor," **She commanded the orc.

Soon after Kyona swung up onto a well armored Cainis, a breast plate covered the front of her while a sort of helmet was resting on her head, and plates of armor were fastened to her sides. Warg armor was designed to not slow down the warg if it was running or fighting. Kyona dearly hoped her warg would survive the battle. Fang's familiar weight rested against her hip, it brought a small feeling of security to her heart. There was a slight commotion behind her; she turned to see Azog astride Azazal, the promise of a future battle alight in his eyes.

**"Good, I see you found your warg." **Azog said. **"She came crawling back a few weeks ago all burnt up." **

**"I am glad she still lives." **

**"I knew your attachment to her was strong, no warg would be the same to you."**

A small smile graced Kyona's lips.

**"Aye, she is quite special to me." **Kyona wasn't sure if he had heard her comment, but it did not matter. He had kicked the warg into motion.

They rode for the Lonely Mountain.

-oOo-

Beneath the haze of the horde's power, Thorin was still slightly sane. He was standing in front of the army from the Iron Hills. Daín was on his left and his nephews on his right. The other two armies stood in a tense silence, the sky was cold and grey, promising snow later on. Faint fear was tussling in his heart; fears that the dwarves would lose the battle, that his nephews would not survive the battle, and that he would never see Kyona's face again.

Then, the sudden sound of bows twanging and arrows whistling filled the air, the battle was about to begin. But then a dark cloud and rolling thunder filled the air.

"Halt!" Cried a voice like thunder, there, standing between the advancing armies was Gandalf, his arms held upwards.

"Dread has come upon you all! Alas, Azog the Defiler brings an army of terrible might to the mountain! They will be upon you soon; the swiftest wargs have already come!" He bellowed.

The eerie howls of many wargs filled the air. Men, elves, and dwarves alike looked to see the shapes of wargs and goblins coming fast on the horizon. War cries ran out from a group of confident men who ran to meet the orcish army. They were felled by black arrows. A horde of warg riders pooled up in what they may have considered a rank.

An icy hand clenched Thorin's heart. In front of the orc riders was Kyona, riding her warg and shouting in Black Speech. She was in leather orcish armor, her face bore blue war paint and there was a wild look in her storm cloud eyes. Fear for her life was eminent in his mind; she rode with confidence and prowess.

She was their queen.

There was his betrothed, already a queen to a vile race. They respected her. The orcs looked to her to lead them. Their eyes met from across the battlefield. She gave the smallest of nods to him, it was a reassuring gesture. He felt better; she was still loyal to him.

But then his happy feeling was gone. For the orc ranks had split and The Defiler came forth, his white skin standing out against the black ranks. The white warg he rode was growling at the other beasts. Azog stopped beside Kyona and said something to her. Thorin could tell she was cold to his attention when he saw he lips move in a strained reply. Azog did not seem to pick up on this note of odium. He kicked the warg forward and stood away from his troops. With his left hand he raised his trademark mace about his head and let out a bellow of rage and battle lust which echoed through the valley.

The clouds burst.

Orcs and goblins swarmed in from all directions, some even poured down from the mountain. The dwarves fought with vengeance in mind, many of their kin had been slain by the Azog's forces in the past, and they all wanted him dead. Panic threatened to overtake Thorin when he lost sight of Kyona, but then he was attacked by a warg rider and his mind was filled with the threat of battle.

-oOo-

Where was Oakenshield? That was the question pressing foremost on Azog's mind. He wanted the dwarf king dead for many reasons. But he realized the main motivation behind his hate for the dwarf was what he had done to Raven, ever since the girl had come back to him his hatred had increased. The pale orc swung his mace, crushing the skull of a passing man. The metallic smell of blood was overpowering in the sharp air.

The battle raged on for many hours, until the sun was about to set. The white orc moved to a high point in the battle field where he would be able to observe his enemy. Azog feared that Thorin had been slain, until there was a commotion below him; orcs were being slain left and right. He saw a flash of gold armor; a twisted smirk came to his face. It was time to end the feud which had been brooding for many decades.

Thorin Oakenshield stood below him, wielding a grand axe which was soaked with black blood, his eyes were murderous and he was heaving giant breaths from rage and the battle, just seeing the dwarf who had crippled him and hurt his daughter made Azog's blood boil.

"You," Thorin spat, sweat was pouring off his brow.

**"You have done something, Thorin, son of Thrain, which I cannot overlook," **Azog in a mocking tone before adding venomously. **"You hurt her."**

Thorin did not reply, but instead he charged upward, his axe raised and a dwarven battle cry on his lips. Azog glared forward and held his hook and mace out almost as if welcoming him to his death. The pale orc realized he underestimated the dwarf when a smaller axe embedded itself in Azazal's skull, killing the alpha warg.

Azog cursed his ill luck and leaped off the dead warg. Thorin charged him, yelling as he swung his axe at the pale orc, Azog parried the blow with his mace while swinging his hook around to try and catch Thorin off guard. It was Thorin's turn to dodge the blow. The dwarf lord pulled a knife from his belt and sliced the flesh of Azog's intact arm.

_'I know your tactics, Oakenshield.' _Azog thought.

Their battle raged on for what seemed to be an eternity. But eventually, Azog got the upper hand. Thorin had let his guard falter for a millisecond and Azog had already plunged his hook into Thorin's stomach. A triumphant grin came over Azog's cruel features. Thorin was gasping in pain; blood began to ooze from his mouth as Azog yanked the hook out of his stomach.

**"You thought you could have her?" **Azog taunted. **"You fool, she has always been loyal to me, and she always will b –"**A sharp pain came slamming into his chest.

He looked down and saw that there was a knife sticking into the palm of Raven's handprint. But as he was sinking to his knees he looked up. There were two smoldering grey eyes glaring at him.

Raven.

Raven had just stabbed him in the chest with that pathetic excuse for a weapon. She stared at him; he could tell she was in slight shock. Snow had started to fall in the freezing air. The snow brought back a memory.

_"I will kill you one day." She vowed solemnly, Azog looked down at the small blood-soaked girl and smirked._

_"I'd like to see you try."_

Time seemed to stand still as they looked at one another. He saw the fury in her eyes and sorrow in her eyes. He began to fall, his body was beginning to shut down, and she came to his side.

"I cannot let you kill him." She whispered.

Azog wasn't sure if he could reply, bitter blood was in his mouth. He felt his head hit the hard cold stone; everything was hazy in his mind. Azog felt the warmth of Raven kneeling beside him; he knew he could kill her now – he _should _kill her, but he couldn't, he was weak, he couldn't kill this child that had brought so much joy to him. If you could call it joy, he had never felt the emotion before Raven had come into his life. The snow seemed to be mocking him, taunting his decision to leave the girl alive all those years ago.

He reached up and ran his fingers through her short hair, tears were brimming in her eyes, but her grey depths were filled with fury. Azog noticed one thing, her braid. She had not cut the betrothal braid. And there, on the end of the small weave was the silver bead with its symbol of Durin smirking down at him. The only thing he had truly ever trusted had betrayed him. His daughter had killed him for the love of his sworn enemy.

The pale orc thought dying would be a horrible experience, but no, he was simply fading away with the one he cared for most by his side. It honestly felt like a feeling he had experienced before. Suddenly he felt a tremor go through his body. He was sure he going to die. So, with his final breath he spoke to Raven.

**"Your vow has been fulfilled."**

Then his eyes closed and his body fell limp.

-oOo-

As soon as the battle had begun Thorin had been looking for Azog. Thorin felled many orcs with his axe, but he could not find Azog's pale form. The dwarf was looking for a glimpse Kyona, but he never once saw his beloved. The battle waged on for hours, Thorin killed countless numbers of orc, warg, and goblin. He began to fear that Azog had fled from battle until his saw the trademark flash of white upon a high rocky point. The battle lusted dwarf charged towards him, killing orcs with every blow until it was just him and Azog.

"You," He spat, feeling the tickle of sweat running down his forehead.

**"You have done something, Thorin, son of Thrain, which I cannot overlook," **Azog said. **"You hurt her."**

Thorin's rage tripled, and then he saw the blue hand print on Azog's chest. It was Kyona's hand no doubt. Thorin was now blind with rage, so he attacked. The next moments were a blur, from his throwing the small axe into the wargs skull to getting Azog's hook slammed into his gut. Thorin gasped, the pain was worse than anything he had ever experienced. He felt his life blood flowing away as Azog pulled his hook out. A triumphant smile was plastered onto his face.

**"You thought you could have her?" **Azog taunted. **"You fool, she has always been loyal to me, and she always will b –"**And then she was there.

Her shoulders heaving from anger, Fang was plunged to the hilt in the center of the blue palm. Azog looked utterly shocked for a moment, and then he sunk to his knees. Kyona went to his side, Azog collapsed backwards onto the thin layer of snow. She was kneeling beside him, Thorin saw her whisper something but he could not tell what it was. His vision was clouding. Azog said something in his deep guttural language before he fell lifeless. Thorin barely saw Kyona stand up before he knew no more.

-oOo-

Kyona caught Thorin's gaze from across the battlefield. She gave a small nod to him, she wasn't sure he caught it. Then she saw white out of the corner of her eye, Azog was beside her.

**"Do not show them mercy, kill them all." **He told her.

**"Of course, why would I do any different?"** She said.

Azog spurred the Azazal forward and let out an echoing bellow. The battle had begun. From the start Kyona did her best to disappear from both Thorin and Azog. She was slicing orcs necks from behind; they wouldn't see her coming till Fang had slit their wiry throats. Many elves, man, and dwarves would stare at her in shock when she downed an oncoming orc. Then she would simply bound away without a hint of acknowledgement towards the soul she had just saved.

The smell of blood was thick in the cold air; her breath was a puff of mist. Cainis looked like a dragon breathing smoke. Kyona felt no remorse as she struck down orcs; they were beasts in her mind. The small voice in the back of her head had been extinguished, she was her own now, and she had no need for the heartlessness of the orcs. 

Time had no meaning for Kyona that day. She killed so many orcs she couldn't even keep track. The sun was setting and snow was beginning to filter down from the gray sky. Kyona was doused in black blood and snowflakes when she saw them, staring each other down. The hate burning in their eyes was enough to make panic rise in her chest. With a sharp kick to Cainis's side, the wargs and girl leaped forward at incredible speeds.

She was almost upon them when Azog slammed his hook into Thorin's stomach. A twisted grin came across his face. Kyona's heart stopped. That was going to kill him. Her love was going to die by Azog's hand… hook. The cloud of fury that overcame Kyona's mind was too strong for her to contain. Azog pulled his hook out of the dying dwarf's stomach with a sickening squelch and spoke to Thorin. Cainis gave a powerful leap forward; Kyona used the momentum to spring forward into the air, Fang drawn.

She slammed Fang into his chest with all the force she could muster. Blood poured from around the hilt of Fang and down his pale torso. Azog looked down in shock at the knife protruding from his chest. He looked up and met her furious gaze. The look of utter horror and betrayal was in his eyes with an underlining of anger. But then there was sadness, the look of a father when his child lied terribly to him. He fell to his knees. Kyona could no longer be away from him, she went to his side, her actions registering in her mind. He collapsed, his head hitting the ground.

"I cannot let you kill him." She whispered, tears pricking her eyes.

Anger flashed through his glazing eyes, but then it was replaced with hurt. His large pale hand came up to her hair, running through the short brown waves. She saw a small tremor run through his body before he whispered.

**"You vow has been fulfilled."**

Then he went limp.

Hot salty tears were pouring down her cheeks as she stood. Her breathing evening out, she had fulfilled her vow. The haunting feeling was gone. She looked to Fang which was still lodged in his chest.

She had done the right thing.

Kyona turned to Thorin, who was lying on the ground in a pool of his own crimson blood. She rushed to his side, feeling his pulse. It was faint but still existed. She whistled for Cainis and tried to pull him up from under the shoulders. It was in vain, he was far too heavy for her to lift. Ky screamed in frustration. But then someone came to a silent stop in front of her. Her teary grey eyes looked up. It was Dwalin.

The dwarf warrior stood grim and battle worn in front of her. They stared for a few seconds before Dwalin swooped and heaved Thorin up and hoisted him up onto the warg.

"Save him." He said throatily before hefting his axe and returning to the battlefield.

Kyona wasted no time. She was upon Cainis like a bolt of lightning, her arm fastened around Thorin's chest. Cainis had never run so fast in her life, the tan warg dodged and leaped like a hare through a forest. Kyona knew that there was a camp near the mountain. That was where she would take Thorin. Along the way she noticed with great distress how many orcs and goblins there were. She hoped that they would not be overwhelmed.

Kyona burst over a hill of shrubbery and to the edges of the base camp. An elven archer greeted her with an arrow at the ready; bodies of orcs were piled outside of the camp. His blue eyes were alight with rage. She recognized this elf; he was the prince of Mirkwood.

"Let me pass! King Thorin will die if not!" She yelled.

His eyes were alight with confusion, then their blue depths filled with realization, he lowered his bow slightly.

"I will not let that beast into the healing camp!" He spat, looking at Cainis.

"Do not slay her! She is a loyal beast and will do you no harm!" Kyona warned.

He gave a sharp nod before shouldering his bow and coming near her. He was wary of Cainis but the warg made no hostile advances. The elf helped Kyona pull Thorin off the warg and carry him to the camp. They were greeted by Óin soon after, the two carried Thorin to a nearby tent and lay him on a cot. His wounds were grave; he had almost no chance of surviving. The shock of all that had come to pass hit Kyona like a stone. Her chest contracted and she fell to her knees, eyes glazing over in shock. She barely felt the elf prince come to her side, his melodious voice was urgent but she could not make out the words he was saying. Her world spun then turned black.

-oOo-

When the world came to focus the sun was streaming through the canvas of the tent. Kyona sat up and looked around, she was alone. A simple, white, cotton gown adorned her figure. The gritty war paint was no longer clinging to her cheeks. She swung her legs out of bed and let her feet touch the trampled, dead grass beneath her feet. The tent flap rustled and in came Karri. The curly haired girl hadn't been expecting her to be awake so she squeaked in surprise.

"Kyona! You're awake! How are you feeling?"

"Where is Thorin?" Kyona asked, her voice hoarse.

The normally happy girl looked utterly broken. He eyes red from crying; a bandage around her forehead, and the innocent light in her eyes was gone.

A look of sadness came to her eyes. Color drained from Kyona's face.

"He is dead?"

"No, but –" Karri hiccupped and looked down, tears welling in her eyes. "—Fíli." She started to sob. The meaning hit Kyona hard, Fíli was dead. She slumped forward.

"May I see Thorin?" She asked, keeping her voice soft.

"Yes, of course!" Karri said, wiping her eyes and waving her hand. She was trying to be strong.

Karri took Kyona through the campsite. Injured men, dwarves, and elves were strewn around the camp. The hopelessness in the air was enough to make a grown man cry. They came to a tent which was larger than all the other tents. Outside it sat the members of the company. They were nursing their wounds as tears threatened to spill from their eyes. They looked up to her as she came forward behind Karri. A low sobbing came from inside the tent, emotion welled up inside of Kyona.

She flipped the tent open. On the ground was Kíli, he was holding the lifeless body of his brother, sobbing. Fíli's blonde hair was matted with blood and many arrow wounds were in his chest. Kíli had a long slash across his face and a bandage around his leg. His tear and bloodstained face looked up to her.

"Kyona, why did this happen?" He choked out.

A tear came from her eye.

"I don't know, Kíli. I am so sorry." She whispered.

Kíli closed his eyes and returned to his mourning. Her eyes roamed around the tent, lying on a cot, was Thorin Oakenshield. His eyes were closed and his armor discarded. Heavily bloodstained bandages were wrapped around his torso. He was deathly white. She rushed to his side, grabbing his large calloused hand. Her small fingers went to a stray lock of hair on his forehead.

"Thorin, Thorin!" She sobbed out.

He stirred, and then slowly opened his eyes.

"Kyona –"he coughed. "My love, are you alright?" His voice was hoarse.

"Yes, I am fine. But you're not!" She gasped.

"I know my love." He gave her a warm smile.

"Thorin you're dying!"

"I know, that is why we must do this." He coughed.

Kyona scrunched her brow in confusion.

"What?"

"It does not matter. I love you and I cannot have my kin treat you as if you were nothing. Call for Balin, he will know what to do." Then Thorin collapsed in a fit of violent coughing.

Kyona stood swiftly and went for Balin. He was speaking to Dwalin outside of the tent.

"Balin, he asks for you."

Urgency filled the old dwarf's eyes. He limped into the tent. Thorin gave him a small smile.

"Balin, my old friend. Before I pass I wish you to fulfill one last task."

"Anything, Thorin."

"I wish you to bind myself and Kyona in marriage before I die."

The elderly dwarfs eyes widened, as did Kyona's.

"But Thorin –"He began.

"Do it." Thorin hissed in pain.

Balin nodded.

"Kyona, come forward."

She did so, taking Thorin's hand. His large hand enveloped hers.

"Do you, Thorin son of Thrain, son of Thrór, King Under the Mountain, take Kyona, sister of Bard, to be your wife?"

"I do."

Balin turned to Kyona.

"Kyona, sister of Bard, do you take Thorin, son of Thrain, son of Thrór, to be your husband?"

"I do."

"I pronounce you husband and wife." Tears were twinkling in Balin's eyes.

Kyona leaned down and gently kissed Thorin, he kissed her gently in return.

"I love you Kyona." He whispered.

A tear from her eyes dripped onto his cheek.

"As do I, Thorin Oakenshield."

His eyes closed and she stood, her head held high. She would not let her husband die, even if it was the last thing she did, Thorin would live to see the next sunrise. She strode out of the tent to Óin who was speaking with Gandalf.

"How long does he have?" She asked firmly.

"A few hours at most." The old healer replied before hearing his name called and hurrying off.

"Gandalf, can you heal him?" She snapped at the wizard.

The old man sighed.

"I am afraid I do not have the powers to heal wounds of that extent."

"Then who does?"

Gandalf looked uncomfortable and cleared his throat, then gave a very pointed glance towards the elven side of camp, his eyes landing on the elven king who was speaking with an important looking elf. Determination dawned in Kyona's eyes.

"It is unlikely that Thranduil will heal him." Gandalf warned.

"I've got to try. Is there anything he wishes for?" She asked.

The wizard thought for a moment.

"He did take great interest in the Arkenstone."

"Where is it?"

"With Bard, the king of Dale. But it will be unlikely for him to give it up!"

"He _will_ give it to me, I am his sister." She growled before starting towards the tents of her brother. Gandalf stared after her, making the connection between the two.

Her eyes were alight like storm clouds. Nothing would stand in her way.

She was Queen Under the Mountain.


	22. Comfort in Hard Times

**Chapter Twenty Two**

**Comfort in Hard Times**

* * *

The tent flap snapped open and let faint grey light slip into the gloomy tent. Bard sat on a cot, his arm in a sling and a nasty gash across his cheek. Kyona strode forward. Bard's head snapped up and he stood to greet his sister.

"Kyona, you're alive! That orc, you rode with the pale orc, why – "

"Where is it?" She snapped.

Bard was a bit startled at his sister's bluntness.

"Where is what?"

"The Arkenstone, that stone of legend which captured the mind of my husband!" She said harshly.

"Your husband? I had no knowledge of your wedlock."

"Never mind that, Bard, I need the stone!"

"Why the sudden interest in it?"

Kyona huffed and glared at the ceiling.

"I need it to barter for Thorin's life."

Bard snorted.

"What makes you think I want to help that insane greedy king?" He spat.

Fury swirled through Kyona's blood.

"Bard," her tone was cold with fury. "I don't want to hurt you, but I will if you do not give me that stone."

A flicker a fear flashed through her brother's grey eyes. He got up wordlessly and limped to a satchel by the door. He kneeled down with a grunt of pain and rummaged through the contents. Bard pulled out an oval shaped parcel that was about the size of his hand. To save him further pain Kyona walked to him and took the parcel from his hand.

"Thank you." She whispered before dashing out the door.

The sun was setting and shadows were descending over the campsite. Kyona walked with purpose towards the elven side of the camp. Before she could get to the tent of the king she was stopped by a female elf. She recognized this elf from Mirkwood, she was quite beautiful, having long red hair, sparkling hazel eyes, and a fierce expression.

"Who are you to seek the wisdom of King Thranduil?" The elf said.

"I am Kyona, sister of Bard, wife of Thorin Oakenshield and I have a deal I must propose to your king." Kyona said with a hint of hostility leaking into her voice.

The elf looked at her with awe for a moment.

"Then tell me, Kyona, do you have any news of Kíli, son of Dís? Does he live?" The tone of worry in the elf's voice made Kyona raise a brow.

"He lives, but his brother does not and he has gone into deep mourning."

The elf blinked.

"If you see him, tell him that Tauriel sends her condolences."

"I will if you let me in." Kyona gave a small smile.

Tauriel nodded before walking to the tent entrance.

"My king, it is Tauriel, you have a visitor." Tauriel called.

"Let him in." A cold voice said from within.

The red haired elf's lips were in a tight line, she gave a look to Kyona before opening the flap. Kyona came out without a word, there were two elves standing beside Thranduil, one of which was the elf who had helped her and Thorin. The other she did not know but he seemed important.

"Ah, I was not expecting you, Lady Raven." He hummed.

"Do not call me by that name." She growled.

"What is it that troubles you?"

"I ask a favor of you."

Thranduil gave a short chuckle.

"Why on earth would I help you? You're the lover of a dwarven king, a rather scandalous affair I might add. And, you were raised by the orc who led vast amounts of orc and goblins to battle and slaughtered many of my kin, and if I am not correct you were riding at his right hand?" Thranduil said, his unreadable façade never falling.

Kyona took a deep breath.

"You are wrong, Thorin and I are wed, and I have just as much power as he! If you did not know, king, he is lying on his death bed and I have come to save him, I know you can heal him." She said with viciousness.

Without breaking her intense gaze Thranduil motioned to his companions.

"Leave us."

The elves gave him a worried look before exiting.

"You have a lot of nerve, Queen, to come and ask for Thorin's life," the elven king began. "What do you have to offer in exchange for your beloved's life?" A hint of mocking was in his steady voice.

Kyona blinked once before pulling out the parcel and pulling the cloth away. Tendrils of glimmering light came forth and danced around her hand. Thranduil's eyes widened and he stood up.

"I will give you the Arkenstone in exchange for my husband's life." She said coolly.

Thranduil looked deep into her eyes, trying to figure out what she was playing at. But he found nothing but truth.

"You do realize that even if I do agree to save him he or his kin will most likely deny my aid?"

"He is unconscious and I can distract his company. I do not want anyone to know that you have the stone. It would cause unnecessary problems." Kyona said in a businesslike manner.

"And if I do not agree to your terms, what will you do?"

She was silent.

"I will try and rebuild the kingdom of Erebor without the love of a spouse."

-oOo-

This hit Thranduil hard. His wife had been killed when Legolas was still a child. He knew how hard it was to not have a spouse at your side while ruling kingdom. The elven king bit the inside of his lip.

"Fine, I will heal him."

Kyona melted with relief; he saw the glimmer of tears in her grey eyes.

"Thank you." She breathed.

He stood and began to prepare for an intense healing session. Then he felt a cold weight shoved in his hand, he looked down and saw the Arkenstone glowing in his hands, it truly was a beautiful stone, it would look well in his treasury. The girl stood in front of him, a simple white gown adorned her slim figure. Her hair was dark and wild around her small face. Her grey eyes stared up at him. For some odd reason he felt a fatherly protectiveness for this quick tongued young woman.

"Lead the way." He said.

-oOo-

The company was still milling around the tent that Thorin was resting in. It was dark out but clouds to the west still held a faint golden glow. Kyona came forward to them.

"Lass, he isn't doing well." Bofur said.

"I am aware. I will go to him, you all need to rest," She told them. they were all about to pretest.

"That's an order. You have all fought gallantly for your home. And now, as your queen I am concerned for your welfare, so go and rest." She commanded them.

They all nodded and walked away, their shoulders slumped in exhaustion. Kyona was about to wave Thranduil forward when the one and only Bilbo Baggins came out of the tent, tears were in his eyes.

"Kyona, you must see to him. He is in his final moments!" The hobbit sobbed.

Panic rose in her chest. She waved for Thranduil who hurried to her side into the tent, Gandalf stood by Thorin, the dwarf's eyes were closed and his breathing was shallow and pained. Off to the corner was Kíli, he was asleep but tears still fell from his cheeks. Gandalf was about to speak when Thranduil raised a hand and began to undo the bandages around Thorin's torso. The wounds were grave. There was a gaping torn hole in Thorin's stomach; Azog's hook had done a number on him.

Thranduil's lips began to move silently and the faintest of glows came from his slender hands and went to Thorin's wound. Kyona's eyes widened when the inside of the wound began to mend itself. The magic worked its way to the surface of the wound, making the incisions in his skin nothing more than angry red marks on his flesh. Thranduil pulled his hands away and began to wrap new bandages around his torso.

"That is all I can do. He will need to stay in bed for a while, his body must recuperate. The wound may always give him bouts of pain, with a wound like that I am surprised he made it this long." Thranduil said.

"Thank you." Kyona said to him, Thorin's breathing was deeper and more even.

"You're welcome, Queen Kyona." The elf nodded and ducked out of the tent.

Kyona and Gandalf stood by Thorin's bedside, the dwarf's face was relaxed, the pain of his wound was greatly diminished.

"You are a remarkable young woman, Kyona." Gandalf said.

She laughed.

"Do you know my story?" She asked, a lopsided smile on her face.

"Only bits and pieces,"

"Prepare to be shocked." She warned before diving into her story.

-oOo-

Karri shuddered as the bitter wind blew against her. The streaks of tears on her cheeks had all but frozen there. Her head was throbbing from the wound which was starting to itch. Fíli was gone. Taken by the cruel hand of death, she did love him… but not with the passion he had showed her. She felt as if she was ready to move on. She was so young and there was so much life for her to live not sobbing over a lover she had known for less than a week. It made her cringe at the feeling of moving on so easily. Should she never love again? It was an internal battle that made her groan.

Then the sound of soft footsteps on stones reached her ears, she flipped her eyes quickly to see and elf standing barely a yard away from her. His deep green eyes watched her.

"Do you need something?" She sniffed.

He watched her for a moment.

"No, but I couldn't help but tell you seem to be distraught."

"Y-yes, I lost a loved one in the battle."

"I am sorry." He apologized as he came forward and sat beside her.

Karri couldn't help but feel a little odd around this handsome immortal.

"What is your name?" he asked.

"Karri,"

"I am Endellion, general of elven king Thranduil." The elf gave a bow with his head.

Karri's mouth was agape; she didn't know what to say.

"I- um – it's a pleasure to meet you." She said.

"Where is your family?" He asked.

Karri looked down.

"They were killed when Smaug attacked Lake Town."

"You have nowhere to live?" Endellion asked, his voice almost sounded hopeful.

"Now that Fíli is gone," her eyes grew misty as she looked out over the snowy battlefield. "I suppose I don't."

The elven general gave her a charming smile and helped her to her feet.

"You are cold, come, let's get you warmed up." He said, putting an arm around her shoulders.

Karri felt a comforting warmth in her stomach, she felt oddly happy. Then in her mind was an image of Fíli, he was giving her an encouraging smile. Then a wave of peace went through her, he was in a better place now.

-oOo-

The dawn broke across the desolated countryside as Óin made his way into the king's tent. Sorrow was already welled up inside of him. He knew that his king had not made the night; it pained him that he could not have done anything to save him. He avoided looking to the face of his king, Óin took his hand, it was warm. The old healer's eyes widened, he pressed his fingers at the wrist to feel a pulse. He held back a cry of happiness; Thorin's heart was beating strong and steady.

The half deaf dwarf tore away the bandages around his torso. He yelled loudly for the others, the wounds which had been serious the evening before were nothing more than angry red grazes. Thorin would live to see another day. The shout of the healer woke Kíli from his slumber. The young dwarf – with difficulty – got up and hobbled over to his uncle. He gasped.

"He's going to live." The barest hint of a smile touched his lips.

The other members of the company came rushing into the tent. They all yelled in glee when they saw the state of their leader.

"They're almost gone!" Dwalin yelled.

"Óin ya really got the touch!" Bofur slapped the healer on the back.

"I-I couldn't have done _that_!"Óin said in modesty.

"Ack! Sure ye could've! All that's important is that he is alive." Balin said.

"Where is Kyona?" Kíli's hoarse voice rang out over the joyous ruckus.

The dwarves all went quiet and looked around. Then they heard a yawn and looked down to beside of Thorin's cot. A very disheveled Kyona stood up and rubbed her eyes.

"Did someone say my name?" She asked, not seeming alarmed at the fact that there were twelve dwarves stuffed into a tent.

Her hair was rumpled and stuck out in every direction; her once pristine dress was wrinkled and had smudges of dirt.

"He's alive!" Nori exclaimed.

"Yes, I know." She gave a bright smile.

"B-but he was almost dead last night!" Óin stuttered.

"Mmm hmm." Kyona had a sly look on her face.

All the dwarves could tell something wasn't right.

"What'd you do, lass?" Dwalin said.

"I am sure there are things that you dwarves should be doing. There are far too many dwarves in this tent!" She made shooing movements with her hands, her voice took on the sound of a mother shooing children away from a fresh batch of cookies.

It was obvious that she was avoiding their question. They all gave her confused looks but left all the same until it was just Kíli and Óin.

"I know what you have done. I don't think he will be pleased." Kíli said darkly.

"Not if he doesn't know." Kyona said.

Óin watched in confusion.

"I can't hear a word yer saying, speak up!" He said louder than necessary.

"Good." Kyona grinned at the healer.

But Kíli was still solemn and cold. It hurt Kyona to see the young dwarf so broken.

"Kíli I –"

"I don't want your condolences," he spat. "I want my brother back." Kíli's voice broke in emotion.

Kyona bit her lip.

"Tauriel sends her sympathy."

At the mention of the elf Kíli rushed out of the tent, leaving Kyona and Óin.

"Who's Tauriel?" Óin asked.

"I don't know, but she knew Kíli and Kíli knew her…"

"Poor lad, he's too young to have this thrust upon him."

"I know, I only wish I could have saved Fíli." She whispered.

Kyona went to Thorin's side and held is large calloused hand; it was the only thing that would bring her comfort in this time.

* * *

**Random AN, but the name 'Endellion' auto-corrected 'Tenderloin' in my computer. I just found this fact very amusing. **


	23. Laid to Rest

**Chapter Twenty Three**

**Laid to Rest**

* * *

It must have been dwarven tradition to have incense burning at a funeral. It filled the air with its spicy aroma. The sorrow in the air made Kyona feel as if she was suffocating. Her dark wool dress didn't help the feeling that something was trying to squeeze the last but of happiness from her soul. They were walking in a slow formation through the underground streets of Erebor. Dwarves from the Iron Hills lined the ancient streets of the mountain city. Their heads were bowed in mourning. For this was the burial precession of Prince Fíli. A sniffle came from beside her. Karri had her head bowed, tears coming from her gentle brown eyes. It pained Kyona to see her this way.

Deep voices began to resonate in the tunnels; the dwarves had started to sing in Khuzdul. Thorin, Kyona, Kíli, and Karri walked directly behind the fallen prince. Fíli lay on a litter; kingly clothes were upon his still form, his favorite swords lay at his sides and a golden crown upon his brow. His face was lax and pale, but he seemed at peace. Behind the litter stood Kíli, his normally playful brown eyes had no light in them; he was just a haunted shell. Kyona reached out and took Kíli's hand. He made no acknowledgement of the contact. Her grey eyes flicked to her husband's, their gazes reflected equal sadness.

The dwarven citizens watched in sadness as one of their princes was carried to his tomb. They also saw their queen for the first time. She walked beside their king, a dress of dark plumb swooshed as she moved, her head held high and her eyes filled with sadness. A beautiful circlet rested on her head, her short hair framed her delicate face. It was curious to them, their queen was human. Most did not mind, but for one particularly bent old dwarf it enraged him. How dare this Thorin, son of Thraín, marry a human? It would muddy the pure lines of Durin! He sent a glare to the woman and hobbled away to the shadows. He would put an end to this madness eventually.

The precession stopped once they had gone deep into the mountain. A freshly cut tomb gaped in front of them. A slab of rock rested against the open tomb, it read:

_Here lies Fíli, son of Dís, daughter of Thrain, son of Thrór of the line of Durin. _

_May his soul be at peace. _

The four litter bearers, Dwalin, Balin, Bofur, and Gloin walked into the tomb and set the litter down onto the stone table in the center of the tomb. They all stepped forward to pay their respects. Karri laid a single red rose on his breast and touched his hair softly, whispering something inaudibly. The heart broken woman stepped back, her black dress swooshing around her feet. Kíli and Thorin came forward. Thorin's wounds made him slower than normal but he still walked forward with the prowess of a king. Both royals took Fíli's cold hands; Kíli looked down, his shoulders shaking and tears running down his cheeks.

Thorin's eyes were squeezed tightly shut, trying to hold back the tears. Hot tears came spilled down Kyona's cheeks at the sight of her husband's pain. She stepped forward, her watery eyes looking at all the familiar faces. These mighty dwarven warriors had been reduced to tears at the sight of their young prince. She lay a hand on her nephew and husband. Kíli turned his head into her shoulder, tears wetting her dress. She looked down at her dead nephew, taken so young from the world.

_Why Fíli?_

Kyona realized she would have given her life for this young blonde dwarf. Kíli continued to sob into her shoulder. He had lost his other half, his brother. They had always protected one another, but in the end he had failed, his brother was gone, never to return from the endless void of death. And so, the company of Thorin Oakenshield stood, crying over the loss of a very dear friend. But soon they knew it was time to leave, with saddened eyes they turned and left. Bofur laid a kindly hand on Karri's back and guided the sobbing girl form the tomb.

Only the royal family was left. Kíli drew a shuddering breath and pulled away from his aunt. He turned and placed a kiss on Fíli's forehead and spoke in Khuzdul to his brother. A single tear came from Thorin's eye as Kíli spoke to his dead brother in the ancient language. Kíli turned and walked from the tomb, not looking back Kyona reached up and wiped the tear from Thorin's cheek. Her hand trailed down his arm, taking his hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. Thorin kept his eyes closed and his head down, holding back his sorrow.

"It will be alright, Thorin." Kyona said softly.

"I promised my sister I would keep them safe, I have failed." Another tear escaped his eye.

"You did everything you could, and do not forget the Kíli still lives!"

"But he will never be the same,"

The royal couple stood by their nephew for a while more until they heard the steps of the tomb cutters coming down to close the tomb. Thorin kissed his nephews forehead and hobbled out of the tomb. Kyona stood, looking at Fíli's lax face. She stepped forward and kissed his brow, just like the others.

"I will keep her safe, Fíli, I promise." She whispered before turning and leaving the tomb.

-oOo-

It was later that the royal couple found themselves in their grand bedroom. It had been repaired from the dragon's anger with furnishings and bedding. It would become more and more completed as the time went on. Kyona was applying salve to Thorin's wounds – which were healing nicely. He lay on the short, wide bed, Kyona sat by his side, applying the minty smelling ointment to his torso. She had to be vigilant on where she applied the salve, the thick black hair on his torso would often move the salve from where she had originally applied it.

"You dwarves have too much hair," she grumbled.

A small smirk came to his face.

"Maybe you have too little,"

"I have the perfect amount of hair! Thank you very much," she scoffed.

"Dwarf woman have beards you know,"

Kyona's eyes widened and she looked up to Thorin's gaze.

"They do…?"

"Yes, my sister, Dís has a beard. They are not as grand or thick as the men's,"

"She is Kíli and Fí – "She stopped, not wanting to bring up her nephew.

"Yes, she is their mother," Thorin said, his voice was soft.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have –"Thorin cut her off with a kiss.

"Let us not speak of him; it brings great sorrow to me. Let us dwell on what is good, we have retaken Erebor, Kíli still lives, and –" Thorin grinned. "—we're wed."

She felt heat rise to her cheeks as he pushed her down on the plush mattress and kissed her again before grunting in pain.

"Blasted wounds." He grumbled before moving to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Just give it a few more weeks." She rubbed his back.

"It is driving me insane, not being able to consummate our marriage."

Kyona didn't know much on the subject of getting pregnant, or well, the before process anyway. But she knew enough to go red in the cheeks at his words.

"No need to be embarrassed, we are married, it is only normal."

"I know, it's just," she looked away, shifting uncomfortably in her wool dress, she was starting to sweat.

"You look uncomfortable." He rumbled.

"Dresses are a pain," She grumbled.

"Here, let me help you," He began to tug on the strings tying the dress in the back.

It eventually loosened and the dark plum dress was falling from her shoulders. She wore a thin white slip underneath the heavy wool dress. She immediately felt better. She wiggled her way out of the rest of the dress, and scooted up to Thorin. They un-tucked the covers and slid under until just their arms were left above. He took her hand and kissed her forehead, they lay there, enjoying one another's company for a while. Thorin was examining her small hand when he noticed something on her left forearm. There were several white scars marring her arm. She had little nicks all over her but these were different. They looked purposefully inflicted.

"Kyona, what's on your arm?"

Her reaction was immediate; she grabbed her left forearm with her right and held it away from him.

"It's nothing! I am going to get rid of it! Don't worry!" She rambled.

His worry increased.

"Ky, show me, what is on your arm?!"

They locked eyes, her grey reflected fear. She was terrified.

"I-I-I you can't- it's not my fault!" She stammered.

He knew his wife, she never acted like this. It was obvious that she wasn't going to show him. So he took the situation into his own hands. He grabbed her arm and exposed her left forearm. He let out a cry of anger. _'Azog' _was carved into her arm.

'_That bastard!' _Thorin thought.

"Thorin I –"

"When did he do this to you?!" Thorin yelled.

"I-in Mirkwood, after he saw the bead."

He exhaled and put his head in his hands.

"I wish you would have let me kill him. I want to make him suffer and die slowly, choking on his own blood." Thorin growled.

"He was tortured enough when I killed him. I wouldn't be surprised if the shock of my betrayal killed him more than the actual wound."

"I know, I can't believe he would do this. I thought you said he had never hurt you?"

She cleared her throat.

"This was the only time,"

"I hope. Why did you hide this from me?" He asked, hurt was evident in his voice.

"At the time you didn't know of my betrayal, and I was afraid that you would reject me."

"Kyona, I would never reject you!"

She raised a brow.

"If you had seen this in Mirkwood you would have run a sword through me without a second thought!"

"That is not true! I would have given you a chance to explain yourself."

"Really? I doubt that," she glared.

"Enough, we shouldn't argue over this," He said, "it will be impossible to remove painlessly."

"I do not fear pain."

"I don't want you to be in pain."

"Well I don't want his name carved on my arm for the rest of my life!"

Thorin sighed.

"We will think of something." He sighed, kissing her forehead.

"I love you, Thorin,"

He gave her a weary smile.

"I love you too, Kyona."

-oOo-

It was a few days later after the funeral when Kyona walked through the stone tunnels of Erebor. A small realization had come to her as of late. Fang was still in Azog's body, or well, _had been_. She was going to the weapon morgue to sift out her knife from the many weapons which had been retrieved from the battlefield. She walked into this large dark area. There were rows and rows of weapons from all races. She had just come down from the rather small stables of Erebor where she had gotten Cainis settled in to a rather large stable. The elves had left for Mirkwood earlier that day. Thorin had still refused to speak to Thranduil, to Kyona's distaste. She wanted the two kings to be on peaceful terms.

The queen had come to find out that Kíli and Tauriel had fallen in love while the dwarves were held prisoner in Mirkwood. It made her smile to know that there was some sort of bond between the elves and dwarves. But there was one thing she couldn't get out of her mind. It was the conversation she had had with Karri earlier that day. Apparently Kíli hadn't been the only one to fall for an elf.

_Earlier that day…_

_"You know that you're welcome here in Erebor," Kyona told Karri. _

_The curly haired girl did not reply, but kept looking out the window._

_"I understand if you don't want to, but the offer still stands."_

_"The elves have offered me a place to live, with them." Karri said, still not looking at her friend. _

_Kyona was speechless for a moment._

_"Um – oh, that's wonderful Karri!" She ended with a grin. _

_Karri turned toward her. She had cut her hair so that bangs came down to her eyebrows and covered the name on her forehead. _

_"I have no family left here, you and Thorin will probably be starting you own soon," Kyona gulped. "Their general, Endellion, has taken quiet a shining to me. Although I don't know what he sees in me, honestly." Karri said, looking down, a flush on her cheeks._

_"So you're going with them?" Kyona asked._

_Karri looked wistful._

_"Yes, it will be a new chapter in my life."_

_The queen under the mountain smiled._

_"I am happy for you, Karri. Just remember, you're always welcome in Erebor."_

_Later…_

It made Kyona feel the slightest bit lonely knowing that she would be the only human in the mountain. But all the same, she had Thorin. She walked through the stacks of weapons looking for her knife. She jumped when she almost bumped into an old dwarf carrying some beat up weapons.

"Forgive me!" She apologized, she could feel the hostility radiating off of him.

He was old and bent; his beard was pure white and wild, intense, insane, blue eyes glared up at her.

"Can I help ye?" He said gruffly.

"Um, yes, I am here to inquire about a hunting knife –"

He let out a sharp bark of laughter.

"Ye realize how many weapons there are here?"

"Yes I am aware," Kyona's tone grew cold, she didn't like this dwarf. "My hunting knife was lodged in the body of Azog, the Pale Orc, and I would like to get it back."

An odd look crossed the old dwarf's features.

"There was no pale orc that I know of," he said darkly.

"Honestly, he was on a very prominent high point on the –"

"I said that there was no pale orc! We didn't pull in a body so that is that," the dwarf snapped.

Alarm bells immediately started going off in Kyona's mind. _No body? _That was impossible! Orcs wouldn't pull the body of one of their own from the battlefield! He would have had to pull himself off – _oh no… no, no, NO! _All blood drained from Kyona's face, she balanced herself against one of the weapon racks.

"You killed the orc?" An insane twinkle was in the dwarf's eyes.

"Yes, at least I – "She stopped.

"I'm 'fraid there was no body, you're out of luck!" The old dwarf turned and hobbled down the vast stretches of weapons.

What truly unnerved Kyona was the almost giddy tone in the dwarf's voice. She didn't like this dwarf one bit.

"Who are you?" She called.

The old dwarf turned slowly towards her.

"Chillive, son of Chillgin," Then he limped away.

Kyona was trying to keep her breathing steady; she had just discovered that Azog may have survived. She took deep breaths and walked as if in a trance up to her and Thorin's room. It was conjoining to a nice sized balcony which looked out over Dale. Thorin stood, looking out over the sunset. All he wore against the bitter winter winds was his trousers and a fur cloak. His coal black curls danced in the wind. He heard her shut the heavy wood door behind him, her turned and smiled as she came to his side.

"Kyona," he greeted warmly, and then he saw her pale face. "Are you alright, love?"

"Hmm?" she put on a smile. "Oh yes, I'm fine,"

"I am glad to hear it," Thorin pulled her into a warm embrace.

She rested her head on his shoulder, looking out over the winter wasteland which was glowing red in the setting sun. She felt Thorin sigh.

"I believe everything is as it should be," he said.

Kyona swallowed the lump in her throat.

"I suppose," she whispered.

-oOo-

_Three days earlier…_

Chillve hobbled through the deep snow. He was on the duty of clearing the battlefield of corpses. It was almost impossible with the thick snow going seven feet in some places. His breath looked like puff of smoke in the falling snow. It was late and as far as he could tell there was no one else but him on the battlegrounds. The ground was beginning to go upwards to a high point in the battle field. Honestly Chillive didn't even know what he was doing out here. He would most likely catch his death.

_'Good,' _he thought. _'It will save me from the shame of my king marrying a human woman!' _He hobbled forward in the snow.

His old eyes sudden caught movement in the snow at the top of the hill. The old dwarf moved behind a rock, watching the movement, it was jerky and stiff. Suddenly an arm came from the snow, it was pale. His eyes widened, it must be his mind playing tricks on him. Snow didn't have arms. But then another limb came from the snow, but it wasn't a hand… it was a hook. Fear was gripping his mind, _what on earth?_

But then the hand reached back into the snow and pulled something out, black started to well up in the snow. The hand was holding a knife. Overall the knife was rather unimpressive the whole thing maybe reaching a foot and a half long, a bone handle and a steel blade. But what was terrifying was the black blood. That was an orc below the snow. Slowly, it began to rise from the snow, now; standing before the terrified dwarf's eyes was a tall, pale figure.

But the orc suddenly fell to his knees, grabbing his chest. He was weakened and helpless; Chillive should have killed him there. But there was something about this orc. Something in the back of that insane dwarf's head told him to let this orc live. The dwarf's musing were interrupted by an earth shattering bellow of rage. The orc was shouting all manner of evil things in his dark language. Chillive didn't know much Black Speech but he knew enough to know that the pale orc was cursing Thorin Oakenshield. A twisted grin came to the dwarf's bearded features; he now knew how he could make his king pay for the betrayal of the dwarven race.

-oOo-

Azog didn't know what to expect of death. All he knew was that it was cold and his chest was aching. He wondered if he could move, so he began to move his arms, the cold was mind numbing and his body tingled uncomfortably. Suddenly he burst his left hand out of the cold pressure surrounding him, the pale orc was aware that something was stuck in his chest. He thrust his hook into the air and reached back into the wet cold that surrounded him; his hand felt something hard and cold in his chest. Azog ripped it out, holding back a grunt of discomfort. He began to stand and the pang of dry, cold air hit him. He looked around for a moment. He was on a battlefield, a snow covered, lifeless battlefield.

Everything hit him in a moment; he collapsed and looked at the knife in his hand. So it was true. Raven had betrayed him and killed – wait, no, she hadn't. A feeling of fury rose in his chest. It was Oakenshield's fault, he turned Raven against him! Azog wouldn't have been surprised if that cursed dwarf had ensnared her mind with some sort of dwarvish witchcraft! A roar escaped him before he could stop it. He was going to get his revenge, even if it cost him his life. He struggled to stand, then he heard the crunch of boots behind him. He spun quickly to see an old bent dwarf behind him. The orc immediately went into kill mode; he raised his hook to kill the dwarf.

"You want revenge on Oakenshield?"

Azog stopped, this was an odd development.

"He lives?" Azog growled in common, the language felt odd on his tongue.

"Yes, he does, and he betrayed the dwarven race, dirtied the lines of Durin!" The dwarf spat.

"That dwarf would do anything for his people, I doubt that he would betray his race." Azog said, preparing to kill the dwarf.

"The fool doesn't realized what he's done, taking a human as his queen,"

Azog stopped dead in his tracks, wrath coursed through him.

"The queen?" He said through gritted teeth.

"Aye, she's a wild lass. I've heard rumors that she bartered with the elves for the life of her husband,"

**"Raven,"** He growled.

"I can help you get your revenge. I am old and have nothing to lose," The dwarf said.

"And if you betray me?"

"You can kill me without hesitation," the dwarf raised his hands in surrender.

"How will you be able to lure them out of Erebor?" Azog asked.

A twisted grin came onto the dwarf's face.

"I can't get them out of Erebor, but I can get you in."

Azog smirked. Thorin would die painfully in his own mountain, and Raven? Well, she would be punished for what she had done. But she wouldn't be killed. If she truly cared for these dwarves she would watch them die, one by one as they screamed for mercy.

Yes, that was a comforting thought.

* * *

**The End?**


	24. Author's Note

***The sequel to this story is titled ****_'Cinders in the Dark' _****and can be found in my stories.***

**There has been some fanart for this story and the links can be found on my profile. I took the liberty to create Kyona and several other characters from this story and the sequel. They can be found on my Deviant Art account, there is a link on my profile. **

**I would like to thank you for reading this story, I had so much fun writing it and I'm so glad people actually enjoy my work! :D**

**I would be honored if you favorited or reviewed this story. Even though it is complete I would love to hear your thoughts! **

**I do hope you go and read the sequel! I promise you won't regret it! :)**

**~Artemis Faery~**


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